


Tuskless Love

by QueenOfGlacia



Series: Tangled AU [1]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, First Kiss, Fluff, Found Family, Inspired by Howl's Moving Castle, Inspired by Tangled (2010), M/M, Romance, Slow Build, Wingman Caleb Widogast, Wingman Jester
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-07-20
Packaged: 2019-04-24 18:35:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 36,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14361240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenOfGlacia/pseuds/QueenOfGlacia
Summary: For as long as Jester can remember, it’s been her, her father and her little green friend by the name of Nott.Or:The Fjorester Tangled AU that spawned over at tumblr from PrincessAmericaChavez and MamzelleCombeferre





	1. In Which We Learn of Jester

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MamzelleCombeferre](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MamzelleCombeferre/gifts), [PrincessAmericaChavez](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessAmericaChavez/gifts).



> Sometime, just sometimes, you'll get an idea into your head and it demands being written. This is one of them.
> 
> To clear up, these are the characters and who they are in this world and who they are based on role-wise in the movie:
> 
> Jester: Rapunzel  
> Fjord: Flynn  
> Nott: Pascal  
> Caleb, Molly, Yasha, Beau + The Traveling Carnival: “ruffians”  
> Frumpkin: Maximus  
> Jester’s mother: The King and Queen  
> Lord Something-Something: Mother Gothel
> 
> Jester's kidnapper is the Lord she embarressed in the campaign. In this AU, he took Jester as a way of punishment, as her mother no longer wanted anything to do with him and so he decided to hurt her in the worst/best possible way he knew. But he doesn't blame Jester for this, which is why he keeps giving her elaborate gifts, in the hopes that if Jester's mother ever finds out what he's done, Jester will stand up for him. In a way, he projects his feelings for her mother onto Jester herself by giving her what her mother rejects, though he has no intentions of sleeping with Jester.
> 
> The inspiration from HMC comes in the form of Nott having been turned into a chameleon and Frumpkin being a horse but not being with Caleb (Prince Justin into a scarecrow and - in the book - Suleiman into a dog + Calicifer, Sophie, Howl and their son in the 2nd book having been turned into other creatures/items and not being aware who the others are)
> 
> \---
> 
> Main pairing is Fjorester, with Widoleaf/Widogast and Beauyasha as background pairings
> 
> \---
> 
> I'm starting off slow and short, to get Jester and Fjord's backstories out of the way before the actual story itself begins.

Jester has always lead a life of luxury, hidden away in a magical tower. It is surrounded by lush forests and colourful flowers, boarded by mountains to ensure the tower won’t be found by anyone.  
  
She’s never lacked for anything material; her father is a rich man and brings her gifts in form of clothes, jewelry, books and paints. Sometimes she’ll get new drapes and pillows for her room, or sheets for her bed with only the highest thread count.  
  
Father tells her she only deserves the best he can provide for her, and that her safety is the highest priority, the thing most important to him. Because he loves her and doesn’t want to see her get hurt.  
  
Jester had been hurt, once before, when she was just a small child, too young to remember, her horns barely starting to show.  
  
Someone had tried to cut her hair, and the beautiful blue had turned black.  
Jester doesn’t like black. It’s a dull, lifeless colour, it sucks the joy out of everything and so she barely ever uses it when painting.    
  
But Father doesn’t tell her why that happened. Doesn’t tell her what makes her hair so special, only that she can never cut it. She believes him, because she has no reason not to. And so Jester takes great care of it. Brushes it daily, sometimes even twice a day, and uses scented oils to keep it smooth and shining.  
  
For as long as Jester can remember, it’s been her, her father and her little green friend by the name of Nott.  
  
In one of the books Father has brought her, there is a note hidden in the spine, mentioning someone - or something - called The Traveler.  
Asking Father for books is easy, especially if she takes care not to ask for anything too specific, and he almost always gives her what she wants. And so, before long, Jester has another friend.  
  
The Traveler doesn’t talk much, but Nott cannot speak, and so Jester talks enough for all of them.  
  
She talks about not knowing who her mother was, Father’s evasiveness when she asks. Talks about never having seen anything beyond the valley she lives in, of dreaming of the world beyond but trusting her father when he says she’s safer where she is.  
  
While Jester tries as often as she can to make The Traveler appear, he doesn’t always appear, not in a physical shape at least, though she can still sense his presence.  
It makes her wonder if maybe she talks too much, maybe that is why Father is away so much of the time and doesn’t mind her small, green companion (even though he had once stated he found Nott ugly and Jester hadn’t talked to him for a week) .  
  
So Jester takes up drawing in one of the many journals Father had given her. It is not decorated like the others she own, but is bound in dark, green leather that matches The Traveler’s cloak and so Jester finds it perfect.  
  
She doodles and draws, simple sketches and elaborate and intricate designs side by side.  
  
Jester draws as an alternative way of speaking to The Traveler, tells him about the books she’s reading and the birds that are coming back. About Father’s new gifts and how he stays away more and more as time passes.  
She draws Nott, her little lizard friend, as what she imagines she would look like if she were a person.  
  
She hopes Nott isn’t offended that she’s being drawn as a goblin girl, but Jester thinks it fitting for some reason.  
  
After discovering The Traveler, more often than not she finds parchments hidden in the spines of books Father brings. Some contain spells, and Jester spends time learning learning them.  
Others are in Infernal, and with the help of some translations hidden in other books, Jester finds it easy, natural even to learn the language.  
  
She can only practice the pronunciations when Father is away, but it scares Nott so she stops.  
  
Gradually, Jester’s life becomes duller. The colours turn from greens to browns and reds and yellows and oranges, then it goes away and the world turns dark and white all over again. Her books are now filled with sketches of trees void of leaves, because while her imagination lets her visualise, lets her remember what they look like in spring, in summer and in autumn, this winter hits her harder than the previous ones have and she’s left drawing what she sees, instead of what she wants to see.  
  
One of the crates of books Father gives her contains a volume called _Tusk Love_ , and for a long moment all Jester can do is stare at it.  
When she starts reading it, it dawns on her that it must be a mistake, for surely Father did not intend for her to have a book such as this?  
  
Father never asks for it. Jester hides it.  
  
Reads it only when she knows Father is away and won’t return any time soon.  
Then she begins sketching Oskar, then drawing him. She hides the book and that particular sketchbook away, safe from Father’s prying eyes.  
  
Jester spends winter reading and rereading the book, practicing until she can almost draw Oskar’s face with her eyes closed.  
  
Then spring comes around, buds appearing on the trees as the world comes alive once more. Birds return, their chirping accompanying her hums as she dreams of a life outside, wondering what it would be like if Oskar was real and she was with him out in the world.  
  
Jester wakes early one morning to the sound of chirping birds and light spring rain.  
  
As she opens her eyes, she finds a man standing there, and for a moment she swears she’s dreaming, because Oskar is standing in her room.  
They stare at one another, for seconds, hours, months or years; Jester’s lost all track of time, it’s impossible to tell.  
  
Then, out of the corner of her eye, she spots Nott glaring at the stranger and her self preservation takes over, kicks into gear and she grabs the nearest item without stopping to check what it is as she throws herself at the stranger.  
  
Jester has surprise and momentum at her side and she hits him so hard he stumbles backwards, hitting his head on the door, falling unconscious at once.  
She sinks to the ground, adrenaline surging out of her as she looks at the half-orc with no tusks.  
Shards from _something_ clatters on the floor, and then her weapon falls out of her hands, hits the floor with a heavy _thunk_ and she realises it’s the gift Father had given to her when he returned last, as a belated birthday present.  
  
The lollipop now lie broken on the ground, scattered around her.


	2. Which Brings Oskar

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you SO SO MUCH for all the kind feedback on this!

Okay, so Fjord’s disguise hadn’t worked all that well. He should have expected the entrances to the place to be warded against magical disguises.   
  
But this had  _ not _ been his idea, and so it had not been  _ his fault _ either.   
  
Fjord had been hired to help someone enter the palace and had been paid handsomely enough to not ask questions.    
He would be going there anyway, to deliver some shipments from the ship he had - up until moments ago - been working on, and so had welcomed the extra hands to help him carry the crates.    
  
Once the crates had been delivered, Fjord waited while the pair of halfling women went off to do whatever it was they had paid him for. Leaving without them would be suspicious, and so Fjord just had to wait.   
  
But waiting had turned boring.    
  
So he had begun wondering the castle, taking care to cast disguise on himself to appear to everyone as just another guard. Fjord knew he was good at faking accents, at sounding like someone else, and he took pride in that.   
  
Fjord had become too caught up in his wanderings, especially upon discovering the room fit for a child, looking too clean and orderly, not a speck of dust. But it appeared frozen in time, and Fjord recalled a vague memory of a kidnapped princess.    
Still, it looked beautiful, with walls painted blue, the floors covered with so many soft, embroidered rugs and mounds of pillows that he couldn’t see the floor beneath.    
  
Then a voice had rung out from only a few feet away, followed by clamouring and Fjord had instinctively stepped out again into the hallway.   
There he’d found the young women he’d helped get in knocking a guard unconscious, and they had been about to jump him as well but he had called out to them in his own voice and it had barely been enough to stop them.   
  
Sounds of guards approaching made them all break into a run.   
  
Still in disguise, Fjord told them they would all have a better chance at escaping if he pretended to be chasing the, as they would then be able to run outside, as long as the guards at the entrance didn’t react too fast.   
  
Luck had followed them through the castle, then left them as Fjord’s disguise had vanished as they’d run through the front doors and the guards stationed there as well gave chase.    
Sharing a look with them, as if to decide what to do next, Fjord had noticed them carrying a satchel they hadn’t had with them as they entered.   
  
Torn between doing what would be right, and knowing what would undoubtedly happen had he tried to stop them or find out just what they had stolen, he decided surviving would serve him best, and so he had nodded at them, then charged off in a different direction.   
  
\--   
  
Fjord runs into the forest on the outskirts of town. The guards still chace him, some on horses, and he knows they will catch up with him soon.    
  
He doesn’t think they got a good look at him, but he is still a half-orc, with missing tusks at that, so finding him won’t be too hard. Fjord briefly considers disguising himself again but if the guards catch up to him and find a person in the woods, panting from exhaustion, it will only make it harder.    
  
Especially seeing as they had seen him turn from a guard and then back into himself, which means they know he can disguise himself.   
  
Going back to the city to see if he can find work on a ship in order to get out of Nicodranas is out of question, so continues running deeper into forest, looking for a place he can hide.    
The sounds of hooves sounds closer and closer, and Fjord doesn’t dare to look back, imagines he can almost feel the breath of horses on his neck.   
  
Then he trips on a root and goes down, face first, into the dense undergrowth.    
  
For a moment, he stays still, wondering if he should just lie there and hope he doesn’t get discovered, but decides against it.    
When he moves his hands to push himself up, one of his hands find wooden plank instead of the expected roots and dirt.   
  
He hurriedly brushes dirt and leaves aside and finds a trap door.    
  
There’s no handle, but instead a slot on one side, so he takes out the dagger he keeps in one of his boots and inserts it into the slot, then turns it slightly so it won’t slip out as he opens it.    
It’s surprisingly easy, he finds, but doesn’t have any time to dwell on it as the guards are hot on his heels.   
  
So he takes the dagger out of the slot, then quickly drops down, hoping he won’t break his legs from the fall.   
Fjord is mostly able to see in the dark, which is one of the abilities he’s very fond of having, so landing on his feet is rather easy. Thankfully he hadn’t twisted his ankle when he fell, as it would have been rather impossible to land without hurting himself further.   
The door above him slams shut just as he lands, and the worry the guards will have heards it spurs him on.    
  
It quickly becomes clear these are tunnels smugglers use for storage.    
  
Off to the sides of the tunnel there are small chambers where crates and shelves line the walls.    
There are no torches to be seen, but there are holes carved into the beams that seems to fit the purpose of having torches be put into them.   
While the crates bare some sort of marking (a seal perhaps?), Fjord’s unable to recognize it, so he’s pretty sure he’s not been involved in the moving of these goods.    
  
While looking inside them could provide him with clues as to who it belongs to, he doesn’t have time for this now, and so he moves deeper, following the winding tunnel.   
  
There seems to just be this one tunnel, supported by beams and lined by rooms with the same as the ones he’s already looked into, but he knows there must be at least one more entrance to this place, maybe even one hidden behind crates.    
But looking behind them would take time he doesn’t have, so he can do nothing but move forward.   
  
When the tunnel starts sloping gently up and around, Fjord knows he’s at last near the exit.    
  
This time, there’s no clearly visible exit, but even in the dark Fjord can see one of the stones in the wall ahead is standing out a bit more than the others, and so he pushes it, hoping it won’t trigger a mechanism.   
  
He’s in luck, and a section of the wall opens outwards.   
  
Faint, pale light streams into the tunnel from the room ahead. It looks to be an office of sorts, and Fjord sees the light comes in through the windows facing what appears to be a meadow, rather than from the room itself.   
  
Stepping cautiously into the room he finds it warm, with dark wooden floor and stone walls decorated with tapestries and paintings. It clearly belongs to someone rich, and from the stationary on the desk he recognises the same symbol that’s on the crates below.    
  
Turning around, he spots the mechanism to close the section again.    
Hoping he has not just trapped himself, Fjord pushes it and watches as the section closes again, leaving no trace it was ever there.   
  
Once it’s closed, he turns towards the windows to see if he knows where he is.    
  
There’s nothing familiar about the area ahead, and he doesn’t see anyone, so he moves to open the door, only to find it locked.    
Finding no key next to the door, he rummages through the desk until he finds one, inside a hidden compartment, taking care to not disturb anything too much, wanting to leave no trace.   
  
Then he unlocks the door, steps outside and locks it again, pocketing the key.   
  
Taking in his surroundings, Fjord sees he’s in a valley surrounded by mountains, bordered by trees. And there, in the middle of what appears to be a field of flowers, stands a lone tower.   
No lights comes from within, there are no doors visible from where he stands, nor any other way of entry apart from the windows on the top of it.   
  
Fjord approaches it, circles it, then at last finds an opening, hidden by brambles and prickly weeds that makes his skin itchy when he touches them.    
But it seems to be the only way inside, lest he climbs it, and so he removes it, ignoring the scratches and welts left on his skin, as well as the blood that drips onto the ground.    
  
In the end, he has removed enough to open the hatch.    
  
The opening is narrow, so he has to crawl through it, until he ends up inside the tower itself, where he can see a staircase spiral around, leading up.    
Once he’s reached the top, he finds a trapdoor.   
It’s not easy to open it, as something’s on top of it, but in the end he manages to open it.   
  
Crawling out, clothes snagging on a loose nail, he finds himself standing in a large, circular room.   
  
It’s beautifully decorated, with carpets and cushions and deep chairs, embroidered curtains partially covering windows made of stained glass which casts the room in warm colours, despite the only source of light coming from the full moon.   
  
Another staircase leads upwards, and he follows it, coming upon a door.    
  
Upon opening it, Fjord finds a bedroom, decorated much like the room below. Looking around for a place to hide, he doesn’t spot the person in the bed - a tiefling - until it’s too late, and a blue shape throws itself at him and he is knocked out.


	3. In Which Our Heroes Meet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fjord wakes up.  
> Jester asks to leave the tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had hoped to get this out sooner, but I'm struggling with writing Fjord (and also Widoleaf's taken over my life so while I was supposed to be writing this, I instead wrote another with them... Ooops)

Jester sits on the ground for a long moment, staring at her shaking hands, trying to come to terms with the fact that not only did she just see someone else than her father for the first time, but she had also knocked him unconscious.    
  
The she shifts her gaze over to him, taking in his features. His skin is is dark green but changes to a lighter tone from his cheekbones and down his neck, there’s a scar above one of his eyes and it’s in the form of an X.    
His most noticeable feature, however, is his lack of tusks.   
  
She doesn’t know much about half-orcs, but from what she’s read in books - and seen on the cover of  _ Tusk Love _ \- the lack of them is highly unusual.    
  
It makes her curious, makes her want to ask him about it, but Jester worries it might make her appear rude, like asking Father about Mother.    
She learnt quickly to never, ever ask about Mother. Father always got weird when she did it, but not in a way she had expected, for he had never appeared sad, just… Jester doesn’t quite know the right word for it, if she’s to be honest with herself.    
  
Then the man in front of her stirs slightly, and she looks about to find something to tie him up with.    
  
Jester’s not scared of him, not really. She’s strong, she’s been lifting stuff and moving furniture and is pretty certain she’ll be able to knock him out again should he try anything, but she wants to ask him questions, doesn’t want him to leave before she can learn about the outside world.   
Learn how he got in here, how he found her and if he knows about her, does anyone else?   
  
She grabs a discarded curtain cord and then ties his hands behind his back.    
As she does, she notices his hands are bloodied and covered in welts, so she takes a stray piece of fabrics and dips it in water, cleaning his hands and hopefully soothing the skin.   
  
He doesn't seem to be carrying any weapons, but knows it doesn’t mean anything, so she gives him a quick pat down, finding a key in one pocket, as well as the dagger in his boot. He has a pouch attached to his belt which she searches through, but she has no interest in his money so she ties it closed again.   
  
Jester hides the dagger and key, then takes a moment to think about what she’s got available to use for a weapon.   
  
Nothing comes to mind immediately, but then she looks down on the floor and sees the ruined lollipop and remembers the latest spell she’s learnt; spiritual weapon.   
It only takes her a moment to conjure up a weapon in the shape of a giant lollipop, and she leaves it hanging over the haøf-orc’s still form as she steps behind the screen in her room to change into her clothes.   
  
After all, wearing a nightgown while interrogating a stranger would probably just look weird.   
  
Nott crawls up on her shoulder once she’s done, and Jester sits down on a mound of pillows in front of him so she’s sitting slightly higher up than him, but only barely.    
  
“What do you think, Nott?” Jester asks her only friend. “You think he knows about me?”    
  
Jester knows she won’t get an answer, but asks nonetheless, to fill the silence looming over them, heavy with  _ something _ . She thinks it feels like the calm before a storm, when the pressure in the air drops and the temperature cools, before the rain washes over her tower, accompanied by the sound of thunder in the distance.    
  
She doesn’t realise she has closed her eyes until she feels a comforting presence, one she is now accustomed to. Opening her eyes, she sees The Traveler in the doorway, next to the stranger, and a wave of gratitude flows through her at knowing she’s not alone.    
  
Up on her shoulder, Nott makes a squeaking sound as the man moves and then opens his eyes.   
  
Jester looks over at him, and when her gaze flickers back to The Traveler, she finds he is no longer there, but she still feels calmer than she had moments ago, feels more confident and ready to take on the task ahead of her.    
  
She watches as the man blinks, slowly at first and then more rapidly as he takes in his surroundings and then the scene in front of him.   
  
The moment he lay eyes on her, his pupils dilate and he looks panicked, scared even.  _ And he hasn’t even noticed the lollipop _ , Jester thinks and feels sorry for him for a moment, then she tries - and fails - to stifle a giggle.    
  
“Wha’? Who ‘r you?” He asks her, and Jester’s first thought is that he has a very nice voice. Then it strikes her, what he just said.   
“What do you mean,  _ who am I _ ?” she asks him indignantly.    
“‘s just, we haven’t met before? And then you knocked me out and, uh,” he shifts his arms, testing the strength of his bonds, “tied me up.”   
  
Jester frowns at him. This isn’t what she had expected.   
  
“You broke into my home, of course I did that!” She states, matter-of-factly and proudly. Father will be proud if he finds out she’s able to take care of herself, Jester is sure of it! “But you haven’t answered my question.”   
“Well now, I believe I asked you first,” he retorts, voice calmer than before.    
  
Oh well, he seems harmless enough, Jester thinks.    
  
“I’m Jester,” she says, holding her hand out for him to shake, only to remember he can’t do that now, not when she tied him up only moment before. “And you are?”   
“You can call me Oskar,” he answers after a moment, and Jester stares at him in disbelief. “Whatcha lookin’ at me like that for?”   
  
It catches her off guard, the question.    
  
“I’m sorry,” she says. “I’ve never met…”   
“An orc wt’out tusks?”, he ask, and the drawl in his voice really is lovely, Jester thinks, despite the tone in his voice which suggests he’s received comments on that particular matter before.   
“No, no, that’s not it!” She hurriedly waves her hands in the air, not wanting to offend him.    
“Then what’s with the look?”   
“I’ve never met anyone but my father,” she says quickly, the words falling fast over her lips.    
  
This time the look of disbelief is on his face, aimed at her.   
  
“You mean...” He takes a moment, then, “you mean you’ve never left this place?”   
“Yes,” she nods her head in confirmation.    
“What… why... ?” Oskar seems angry, brows furrowed as he looks around her room, for something Jester doesn't understand.    
  
So she looks around herself, at her paintings and drawings on the walls, the books and sketchbooks and paints and quills and inks covering every surface. At the plush pillows and soft carpets and bowls of fruit, at the flowers Father has given to her- now hanging dried from the rafters, and Jester sees she failed to hang the latest bouquet up to dry - now it’s dry and wet and it’s too late to save it so she’ll have to throw it out the window.   
  
“Are you looking for something?” Jester asks him, wondering why his gaze still keeps shifting, searching.   
“Why?” he asks her again, face now turned towards her again.   
“Why what?”   
  
He asks many questions, this Oskar. But none that leads her to believe he is here because of her.    
  
“Why haven’t you left?”    
“Oh, that! Father says it’s scary out there, that people…” She trails off, not wanting to admit to father saying her hair is magical and that people want it. Especially because Father never told her just what kind of magic it is.   
  
“Yeah?”   
“That people are not to be trusted,” she finishes instead. It’s close enough to the truth after all.    
“Then how do you know you can trust him?” Oskar asks.   
  
Jester falls silent at that.    
  
After all, what can she possibly reply to that? It’s not like Father’s given her any reason to doubt him, but…    
But how can she be sure? How can she know that his gifts aren’t bribery, that he gives her things to keep her from questioning him? To earn her trust?   
  
No.   
  
Surely that can’t be it? Surely Father does love her! He only does this to keep her safe, to not let her be hurt again? Right?   
  
But the fear’s already starting to settle in, to claw at her spine, at the base of her tail.   
  
“Jester! Let down your hair!”    
“Shit!” she says, and sees Oskar’s reaction to the voice that called out her name. “Father’s home!”   
  
Jester makes a split-second decision to hide Oskar, so she helps him stand, then guides him over to the largest mound of pillows, apologizing as she buries him in it, making sure he is covered but will be able to breathe without a problem.    
Father never enters her room, but Jester needs to make sure Oskar won’t get discovered.    
  
She has  _ questions _ which needs answering, and Father won’t, so she has no choice, really.   
  
“In a moment,” she calls out, rushing around to make sure there’s no trace of Oskar being there before she runs down the stairs into the other room, and over to the window, throwing her hair over the edge so she can help Father up.    
  
“Welcome home,” she greets him, taking the bundle of new books from his hands and setting them aside to look at later. “Are you hungry? I was just about to start breakfast.”   
“That would be wonderful,” her father replies, settling into a chair.   
  
Jester notices he looks more tired than last time, and there are bags under his eyes.   
  
And so she talks, to distract both Father and herself, because she can’t stop thinking about the man she’s hiding in her room and the implications of having him there - tied up at that! - and what would happen if Father found him.   
  
She knows Father doesn’t approve of her talking too much, but also knows he doesn’t like it when she asks him questions about what he does when he is away.   
  
So she tells him about the latest book she finished, about the new recipes she’s been trying out and how well the bread turned out, then asks if he could maybe pretty please bring back some more recipes for her to try out so she can get better at making food and that way he can come home to fresh breads and pies.   
  
Once the omelettes are done, she places a platter in front of him, with slices of bread spread with the last of the butter on it, while she eats hers with the last slice of bread and no butter.   
  
The fact that Father notices but doesn’t say makes her upset.   
  
If he truly cares, wouldn’t he comment on it? Wouldn’t a good parent offer up one of the buttered slices to their child?    
Jester’s father only eats his in silence, and when he is done he barely says a word of thanks.   
  
It makes her upset, more so that she would have been the previous day, or even an hour ago. It upsets her enough that she asks a question she knows will upset Father as well.   
  
“Why can’t I go outside?” She asks, back turned to him as she cleans the dishes, careful to keep her voice neutral.   
“We’ve talked about this, Jester,” Father says, and already she can hear the change in his voice. “It’s dangerous for you out there.”    
“But you won’t even let me go out to pick flowers in the spring, or berries in summer or apples in autumn, or to build snowmen in winter.” As she speaks her voice rises, until she is sure Oskar can hear her as well. “I’ve never felt grass under my feet, or smelled the dirt or felt the summer breeze on my skin, or been able to lie down to look at the stars!”    
  
Her voice has grown to a shout now, all her frustration coming out.   
  
“I want to feel the spring rain on my face, to have my feet grow cold and muddy from dancing in the rain. I want to sit outside in the sun until I get freckles.    
Father, I can understand that you won’t let me leave this valley but there’s no reason for me not to leave the tower.”    
  
Jester is exhausted when she’s done talking.   
  
She doesn’t dare look over at Father, and hunches over to make herself seem smaller. Jester doesn’t regret saying it though, because it’s true and it’s all been bottled up inside her for so long. She’s read adventures, read about other parts of the world, other people than herself and her father.    
  
All Jester wants to do is to explore the world. She doesn’t think it’s too much to ask.   
  
But Father… Father doesn’t want her to. Father wants her to stay inside, in her gilded cage. All of a sudden Jester doesn’t feel protected; she feels like a bird who had its wings clipped, or a creature who grew up in captivity and accepted its fate because doesn’t know it is supposed to be free.   
  
“Jester?”   
“Yes, Father?”   
“Don’t ever ask to leave this tower again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, come find me on twitter as MidnightMinx90, and on tumblr as GrayGlacianQueen and QueenofGlaciaWrites
> 
> I also have a ko-fi in case anyone can and would like to support me; the funds will go towards my two last cosplays for a while: Ryder from Mass Effect Andromeda and Caleb Widogast. You can find me there as QueenofGlacia


	4. In Which They Leave the Tower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jester finally leaves the tower

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had 269 words when I started working on this tonight. Then it grew by 2700 words and I don't know how it happened

Jester leaves him buried in pillows.   
  
While she’s gone, Fjord thinks about what they just spoke of, about the life Jester’s lived, so very different from his own, so very sheltered.   
He thinks of his own life, out there, bullied for his tusks. He thinks of the accents he has practiced, of the personas he learnt to adapt as a way to make it.   
  
Fjord hears Jester’s entire frustrated ‘speech’ directed at her father.   
  
It seems to him that she’s been bottling it up too long already, from the way the words falls fast from her mouth, as though she barely dares to breathe for fear of having him cut her off.    
For a little while, it’s silent, and then Jester’s back in her room, digging him out of the pillows.   
  
He looks at her, sees the traces of tears she refuses to shed and stays silent.   
  
Better for her to speak out first, Fjord thinks.   
  
“Will you help me get out of here Oskar?” she asks him, voice steady.   
“Well now, ‘s kinda hard to to that ‘less you cut me free,” he replies, knowing full well that’s not actually an answer, that he’s stalling.    
“Oh, right!” she says, as though she’s totally forgotten about it.   
  
He watches as she fishes a knife out from somewhere on the other side of her bed.   
  
“There you go,” she exclaims happily as the fabric falls to the ground.   
“Is that my knife?” he asks her as me massages his wrists to get the blood flowing again.    
“Oh, I’m sorry! Here,” she says, handing it over. “I thought you’d come here to hurt me.”   
  
The way she says that, so matter-of-factly, scares Fjord.   
  
“Now why would ya think that?”   
“Father…”  she starts, then hesitates for a moment. “Father says that…”   
“Jester?”   
“Yes, Oskar?”   
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t wanna.”   
  
She smiles at him, and it scares him how it affects him.    
  
“How d’you wanna do this?” he asks, changing the subject.   
“Oh, well, we should wait until Father is gone I guess? Then we can use my hair to get out of here! That’s how Father gets in and out. Though I don’t know how I’ll be able to get back in again...”   
“We don’t have to use your, uhm, hair to get outta here. There’s a staircase that leads to a hatch at the base of the tower.”   
  
Jester looks at him, and he can’t read it well enough to understand what it means.   
  
“You never knew, did ya?”   
“No.” She sounds defeated, and Fjord somehow gets filled with this feeling, and it’s not pity, but anger and frustration, because he heard what she said, heard what it is she’s missed out on and he hates her father for it. He doesn’t say it though.   
  
He smiles at her as he stands, offering her a hand.   
  
“What about your green friend?” he asks, eyeing the creature who is… scowling at him? Huh. Weird.    
“This is Nott. She’s been my friend for years. I don’t know where she came from; she was just here one day!”   
“Hiya there, Nott,” Fjord says, hand reaching out to pet her in greeting, but the creature moves to bite him and he barely manages to pull his back in time. “Charming.”   
  
Jester just huffs, apparently used to the antics of the lil’ thing.   
  
“Just let me get packed first, then we can leave,” she says, then moves to pick up this bright pink backpack, stuffing it with clothes and jewelry, as well as the book that Fjord had spotted when he’d first entered.   
  
It’s the very same book he had taken his fake name from, and it was only because he’d heard someone down at the dock talk about it and had giggled over it as they had, talking with their friend about it and looking over at his as they had done so.   
  
Right now, he thinks it might have saved his ass.   
  
It’s not that Jester seems untrustworthy or anythin’, but... They will be asking about him in town, they’re sure to know his name and there might be wanted posters out for him real soon, if not already. Shit, he should have disguised himself as well, but it’s too late now, and besides, he hadn’t expected to be discovered in the tower.   
  
He’ll deal with it later.   
  
Right now, he’s going to help Jester get out of the tower, and the show her around a bit (while disguised) while waiting for the storm to calm down; hopefully finding out just what the heck it was that he’d ended up being dragged into. Then maybe he could even clear his name.   
  
“Oskar? Oskaaaar!”   
“Wha’..? Yeah?”   
“You looked like you were gone for a moment,” she sounds worried, and for a moment, Fjord hates himself for it.   
“Nah, I’m good. Just thinkin’ bout where I should take you ‘s all.”   
  
She perks up at that, a broad grin on her face.   
  
“Oh, I’ve always wanted to go to a city!”   
“You’ve one particular in mind?”   
“Well,” she starts, one finger tapping her chin in thought, “I’ve read a lot about Port Damali!”   
  
It’s not the place Fjord would have chosen, having grown up there, but at least it’s not Nicodranas so he’ll take it.   
  
“Sure, we could go there,” he says. “I’ve, uhm, been there before so I know the way.”   
“Really? That’s great! Could you tell me about it?”   
“Well, it’s been years and I never got to know the city so…”   
  
While not really the truth, it’s not really a lie either. Fjord didn’t explore the town a lot while he lived there, mostly staying and working at the docks, and so there’s not much to tell really.   
  
“That’s okay! We can explore it together then!”    
  
Jester’s excitement is infectious, and Fjord can’t help but smile at it, at her.  _ Damn. _ He really hopes this won’t prove to be an issue. Especially since he can’t predict what will happen. When her father finds out she’s gone, he’ll have people looking for her - unless, of course he can’t let anyone else know about her - but in that case he might look for her himself.   
  
And Fjord could end up getting arrested for kidnapping.   
  
“Yeah, sounds fun,” he says, hoping his voice sounds convincing. “Ready to go?”   
“I’ve been waiting for this for like, so long, you have no idea!”   
  
He smiles at her, then leads the way to the trapdoor. They work together in order to move things out of the way, and she works surprisingly fast, moving furniture out of the way like they weigh nothing.    
  
Fjord wants to ask, but thinks it’s better not to.   
  
“You have a torch or somethin’? he asks, once the area is cleared and the door is opened.   
“I have this,” she offers, holding out a lantern with glass stained in multiple colours.   
“Sure, that’ll do,” he says, procuring flint from his pouch and lights it. “I’ll go first, okay?”   
  
Jester stays right behind him, so close that he can feel the heat radiating off of her. When they’re halfway down, she almost falls when she trips over her own tail as it is swishing about in excitement.    
  
She reaches out a hand to steady herself on him, and Fjord almost falls over as well.   
  
“You okay?”   
“Yeah, just my stupid tail got in the way,” she says, sounding as though it has a life of its own, and Fjord almost asks what it’s like to have a tail, but he doesn’t.   
“We’re gonna have to crawl out once we get to the bottom. But I think you should hang back for a moment cause there’s some thorny stuff on the other side and you’ll end up ruining your dress and get covered in scratches, so it’s better if I just go clear it out first.”   
  
Jester’s silent for a moment.   
  
“Is that why your hands were bleeding and looked funny?”   
“Yeah. Thanks for cleanin’ ‘em by the way.”    
“No problem Oskar.”   
  
Once at the bottom of the stairs, he hands the lantern and then crawls outside.   
  
He doesn’t see Nott following him out, not until she’s perched on his shoulder, and it looks like she’s once again glaring at him. Which is weird, because he hadn’t expected something like her to look so, well, humanoid, in her expressions.    
  
It takes him a few minutes to clear the brambles, and this time he uses his dagger to help him remove it faster, so Jester won’t have to wait too long.   
There’s also the fact that he’d like to get as far away from this place as possible before darkness falls, and every second spent clearing this torny crap is a second too long spent not moving away.   
  
“It’s all clear,” he calls out as soon as he’s removed as much as possible and then thrown it away in a pile off to the side.   
“Here I come!,” she calls back, and seconds later Fjord helps her stand up, watching as she dusts herself off.   
  
Then, ever so slowly, she straightens up and looks around.   
  
Fjord watches every change of her features, as she properly breathes in fresh air outside the tower, as she looks at the grass, closer to her now than it’s ever been before. As her eyes widens when she looks at the first flowers of spring, at the dew covering the grass, reflecting the sunlight into thousands upon thousands of small rainbows.   
  
All the while, Jester’s back is against the tower.   
  
He can’t tell if she’s doing it on purpose or not, but he allows her the time it’ll take for her to soak up the sunlight and whatever it is she must feel.   
She’s practically vibrating with energy, her tail twitching, but she doesn’t move off of the stones they’re standing on for a while.   
  
Then she pulls off her boots, sets them aside and takes Nott in her hands.   
  
“Are we ready for this?” she asks her, voice quavering. “Can we do it?”    
The little creature nods, just once, but it’s all it takes.   
  
Jester leaps into the dewey grass, still cold but she ignores it.   
Instead, she dances around, Nott held tight to her chest as she laughs and laughs, and Fjord can see the tears on her face as she spins around and around. Her long, blue hair streaks out behind her, and at times it seems she’s about to get tangled up in it, but she must be so used to it she avoids it without problem.   
  
Fjord just stares at her, feeling like he is intruding but he can’t tear his eyes away.   
  
_ I did this _ , he thinks.  _ I made her this happy _ .    
He feels proud of himself for once, feels like he is truly done the right thing and it’s almost enough to make him join her wild, carefree dance.   
  
He extinguishes the lantern, then fishes the key from the study out of his pocket.   
  
“I’m terribly sorry to interrupt, but I think it’s best we get going.”   
“Oh… right. It’s a long way away, isn’t it?” She sounds sobered up now, and Fjord hates himself for ruining the moment.   
“Yeah. And we still need to get outta here,” he says, pointing towards the room set into the stone of the mountain. “We can get out the way I got in.”   
“Okay,” Jester says, and Fjord can see that her tears are still running as she pulls on her boots again.   
  
They make their way across the field and into the office. He easily finds the mechanism to open the hidden door, and they walk through, into the darkness.    
  
“Here, I’ll light it for ya,” he says, holding up the lantern.    
  
Once lit, he closes the door again and they’re plunged into relative darkness. Just like in the staircase, the stained glass throws coloured shadows across the walls of the tunnel, and it makes it seem warmer somehow.   
Or maybe it’s just Jester’s presence by his side as he leads the way back out.   
  
Jester stays silent the entire time, and Fjord wonders what she thinks about all of this.   
  
Once at the end, he carefully opens the hatch and peeks out, seeing no one in the vicinity so he deems it safe to exit, helping Jester up first.   
Once the hatch is closed, the once again extinguishes the lantern, then hands it over to Jester, who ties it to her pack.    
  
Then they hear the sound of hooves upon the ground, as see a horse step out from between the trees.   
  
Fjord instantly recognises the decorations on the horse; it belongs to the royal guards of Nicodranas.  _ Shit. Fuck. _ They’re barely out of the tunnels and already there seems to be guards in the area.   
Just because he can’t hear them doesn’t mean they’re not there.   
  
“Such a pretty horse!” Jester exclaims as she moves up to stroke its mane.    
  
Fjord stays a step behind, just in case, and then he starts sneezing like crazy, which he had not expected to to because he’s been around horses often enough to know he is not allergic to them.    
In fact, Fjord’s only ever been allergic to cats.   
What makes it even weirder is that as Jester scratches the horse underneath its chin, it lifts its head much like a cat would to.   
  
_ What the actual fuck?  _   
  
“Are you okay Oskar?”    
“Not really,” he answers, and already his voice his thicker from his reaction. Which, again, confuses him. “‘m allergic.”   
“Oh no, you poor thing!” Jester says, and for a split second Fjord thinks Jester spoke to him, but no, all her focus is directed at the horse which makes Fjord scowl at it.   
  
How come she feels sorry for a horse when  _ he’s _ the one that’s allergic?   
  
“We should get moving, miss Jester,” he says, voice more of a whispered hiss than anything else, eager to get moving. “We’ve wasted enough daylight already.”   
“Oh, but couldn’t we move faster on the horse?”   
“You’re quite right miss, but I don’t think my allergies would agree to that idea,” Fjord answers, then - before she can come up with an argument - adds, “and ‘sides, the horse belongs to the royal guard. Don’t think they’d appreciate us runnin’ off with their property.”   
  
Now why’d he gone and said that? Hadn’t he been the (unwilling) participant in virtually the same thing just the previous day? He briefly considers banging his head against the nearest tree.   
  
“I guess you’re right,” she sighs. “Too bad, he really is pretty.”    
  
Fjord just assumes she’s talking about the horse this time, and turns around to leave.   
It doesn’t take either of them long to find out the horse is following them. Not only is it noisy, but Fjord can’t stop sneezing and it’s getting increasingly harder to breathe.    
  
“Could you, I don’t know, talk to it or somethin’?” Fjord manages to wheeze out, and luckily Jester does as asked.   
  
“I really am sorry, mister horse,” Jester tells it, and Fjord can clearly hear the truth of it in her words. “But my friend here gets sick when you’re around and I really need him to take me to Port Damali.”    
  
The horse looks like he’d much rather come with them, but Nott stares him down, and for once Fjord is glad she’s able to to so, and that it’s not directed at him.    
It bumps its head into Jester’s outstretched hand, much like a cat, and then trots off in the other direction.   
  
“Thanks,” Fjord says, and while the words are directed at Jester, he looks at Nott when he says it. “Kinda thought I’d die for a moment there.”   
“It really is a shame you’re allergic to horses,” Jester says, looking into the forest where the horse disappeared. “Could have saved us  _ a lot _ of walking.”    
  
Fjord can’t help but snort at that, true as it is.   
  
“Well, you could always consider it part of the experience. Most of us do travel on foot. Look at it this way; it’ll be more of an adventure. Cheaper too.”   
“Oh. I guess you’re right.” She smiles at him. “Well, let’s get going!”   
  
He smiles at her, and then they set off through the forest.   
  
They walk for a few hours, until their stomachs start to rumble and they sit down to eat.   
There had been some scraps of food left in the tower, and they had brought what little was left. Jester’s had breakfast, but Fjord’s had nothing so far.    
He doesn’t say anything, and lets her have most of the food, declining when she offers him more after he is finished eating his share.   
  
“I’m fine, I promise.”    
“Are you sure though?” she asks, and he almost falters under her gaze.    
“I’m sure, miss Jester. And you need it more than I do.”  _ Besides, I’m used to going without _ .    
  
They move on a little while later, and soon come upon a creek where they can refill their waterskins.    
As they put the stoppers back in and get ready to move along again, they hear some faint music playing.   
  
“Ooooh, what is that?” Jester asks, eyes shining from curiosity. “Can we go find out?”   
“I’m not so…”   
“Please Oskar! Oh, maybe they have some food! That way you won’t have to go hungry! Or maybe they know where the nearest village is!”   
“Yeah, sure,” he relents, already knowing that resisting her charms will prove damned near impossible.    
  
Besides, they really do need more food.   
  
They follow the creek until they reach a clearing and they both come to a halt at the sight in front of them.   
For there, in the clearing stands a large, colourful tent. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AS ALWAYS, let me know if you spot any mistakes as it's unbetaed


	5. Wherein There Are Some New Encounters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Oskar" and Jester meet the Fletchling and Moondrop Traveling Carnival of Curiosities, which includes Caleb and Beau

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope it's not too heavy on the dialogue this time around?

The feeling of the grass under her feet had been indescribable. The blades sharp yet soft, wet and cold in some places, warmer in others; where the sunlight had heated it up and made the drops disappear.    
  
She’d held Nott in her hands as she danced around, spinning until she could barely keep her balance.   
  
Jester would have loved to continue until the feelings overwhelmed her, but Oskar had interrupted and she’d calmed down. It had been sobering and she’d known the truth to his words; that they had needed to get away, lest Father returned and managed to stop them.    
  
The trip through Father’s study and the tunnels had been odd, for she had never known them to exist.    
At least it had solved the mystery as to where Father came from and how he left after.   
  
Weirdest of all - and most unsettling -  had been the staircase.   
  
To find out that she could have left at any time? That she could have just opened the trapdoor, walked down the stairs and then she’d be outside?    
It all made Jester more convinced that leaving had been the right thing to do.   
  
Maybe Father doesn’t love her after all…   
  
Jester spends the day thinking back on growing up, on Father’s words and actions. Thinks about his gifts and how they were meant to keep her occupied, to keep her from asking questions.   
  
If not for Oskar…   
  
It’s a scary thought, so Jester shrugs it off.    
  
\---   
  
Jester really wished they could have brought the horse with them.   
  
So what if it belonged to the guard? If someone had found out, she could just tell them the truth - that they found him wandering in the woods, all alone, and claim they only brought him along so they could return him.    
And if not, then she could have another friend!   
  
It really had seemed like the horse liked her too, but Oskar had to be  _ allergic _ .   
  
Jester had felt sorry for him though, and it looked like Oskar really had been troubled by it, if his voice and puffy eyes had been anything to go by.    
But still, it would have been easier to travel by horse, despite his words about it being more of an adventure this way.   
  
\---   
  
There is a large, colourful tent in the clearing and the colours reminds Jester of the tower (she refuses to think of it as  _ home _ ).   
  
The large tent is flanked by some other, smaller ones. They see a couple carts, some horses and a ragtag bunch of people of various races and colourations - most prominent is the lavender tiefling in a colourful coat who stands next to a large woman with hair that is black but gradually turns white the further down it goes.   
  
Jester immediately moves to approach them.   
  
“Jester, wait!” Oskar hisses at her, but she ignores him and skips up to the tiefling.    
  
Everyone around stops as she approaches, but Jester ignores them. She looks at the one who looks so much like her, yet so different.   
His skin is lavender, eyes red, there’s a tattoo running up one side of his face and his horns are decorated with gold and silver and gems.   
His shirt is open down to his chest and she sees scars, shining like silver in the light from the setting sun.   
  
“Hi, I’m Jester!” she says, and hold out a hand to him.   
“Hello, Jester. I’m Mollymauk Tealeaf, Molly to friends,” he answers as he takes her hand and kisses the back of it. “And this is Yasha.”   
“Hiya Yasha! This is...” Jester turns around to introduce Oskar but doesn’t spot him.    
  
“Oskar, why are you hiding in the trees? That’s not very nice you know!” Next to her, Molly laughs and out of the corner of her eye, Jester sees the hint of a small smile tug at Yasha’s lips.   
  
He comes out of the trees then, approaching them slowly, almost sulking.    
  
Maybe he is not fond of meeting new people? Jester can’t really understand it; she’s been waiting to do it her entire life! And now she’s not only met Oskar, but she’s currently meeting a whole group of people - and one of them is even like her!   
  
This is the best day ever!   
  
“Oskar, this is Molly, and this is Yasha. This is Oskar, he’s taking me to Port Damali!”   
“Is he now?” Molly asks with interest. “You’re in luck then, cause we’re also headed that way.”   
“Really?!” Jester is unable to hide her enthusiasm at this point, bouncing on the spot, tail flitting about.   
  
  
More people start approaching them and they introduce themselves in turn.   
  
There’s Bo the Breaker who is not to be confused with the other Beau, (who is a human woman), Gustav and Desmond who the carnival is named after, Toya and Ornna. Molly tells them there are two other members as well, a pair of halfling women named Mona and Yuli, though they are not currently with them.   
  
At last there’s Caleb, a human wizard who really seems to be the odd one out.   
  
Jester doesn’t understand what he is doing with them, can’t see what his role amongst them is, and because Jester’s never had any practice talking to people apart from Father, she asks Molly.   
  
“What’s he doing here?” she asks, pointing towards Caleb’s retreating back. When Molly looks at her all confused, she continues “I mean, you all have acts, right? So what’s his thing?”   
“Ah. Well. Caleb’s not actually with us in that way. He helps out in exchange for traveling with us so he can find someone.”   
  
She brightens at that, curiosity overwhelming.   
  
“Is he looking for his true love?” Jester asks, thinking back to the books she’s read about people who does that.   
“No.” There’s a strange tone to his voice, that Jester thinks is both disappointed and hopeful all at once and it leaves her confused. “His friend was put under a spell and he is looking for her. He also lost his familiar and another spell is stopping him from being able to control it, so he doesn’t know where Frumpkin is either.”   
“Frumpkin?” What a strange name, Jester thinks.   
“It’s the name of his familiar,” Molly clarifies, and his tone sounds lighter again, but there’s still that shadow of  _ something _ in it.    
  
Jester looks over at Oskar, who stands to the side, not taking part in any conversations, but hovering just beside her in case she should need him.   
  
“So what do you do?” She asks Beau, who was the only one not to leave again after their introductions had been made, instead hovering by Yasha’s side.   
“We’re like, you know, the bodyguards,” Beau says, the hand not holding her staff waving between herself and Yasha. She has a hoarse voice, and Jester finds she likes it.   
“Do you get to beat people up a lot?” Jester asks, and she really, really hope they do and that she’ll get to see it because that would be  _ so cool _ !   
“Oh yeah,” Beau says, nodding, doing her best to sound cool, which Jester doesn’t think she needs to do, because Jester already thinks she is.   
  
Night is rapidly falling at this point, the sun casting its last rays into the clearing.   
  
“So, uh, what’s with the hair?” Beau asks her, and for a moment Jester feels frozen. Oskar hadn’t asked her about her hair, and so she’s not at all prepared for the question now.   
“Why? Do you liiiiiike it?” Jester asks in return, her head tilted to the side, grinning to hide her reaction to the question.   
“Yeah, it’s, uh, it’s real pretty. There’s just, like, a lot of it?”   
“That’s because it’s so pretty, duh!”   
  
Beau just looks at her for a long moment.   
  
“Okaaaay! Well, we better start making dinner, huh, Yasha?” Beau says, then grabs Yasha’s hand to drag her away before the tall woman can reply. Jester sees the faint blush that appears on Yasha’s face as soon as Beau’s hand touches hers.  _ How cute _ !    
  
Jester feels relieved that Beau let the topic go, but at the mention of food her stomach starts growling and she realises they’ve not eaten in hours.   
  
“It was nice meeting y’all, but I think we should get moving.”   
“There’s no need for that! We’re all headed the same direction after all. Why don’t you just travel with us? Safety in numbers and all that,” Molly offers, and Jester really hopes Oskar will agree to it.    
“Now, that’s mighty kind of you, but…”   
“No ‘buts’. You’re clearly not prepared to be out here, and I can’t in good conscience let such inexperienced travelers as the pair of you go on alone.”   
  
She fixes her gaze on Oskar, willing him to listen to  _ her _ at least, if not Molly’s words.    
  
“If you’d ‘scuse us for a moment,” Oskar says to Molly, then pulls her off to the side.   
“I really like him,” Jester starts. “I think we should go with them.”   
“You sure it’s a good idea? You can’t just trust everyone you meet, ‘cause there are people out there who’d take advantage of ya for being naïve like that.”   
“Well, I’m here with you aren’t I? Are you saying I can’t trust you Oskar?”   
  
It makes him shut up for a moment, and Jester takes a moment to study him.   
  
He seems unsure now, clearly fighting against himself, trying to figure out what’s best for the pair of them. They both now they don’t have what they need to make it through the trip up to Port Damali. There had been barely any food left in the tower when they left, and they’d taken what little had been with them.    
The air is already getting colder and they don’t have any blankets or sleeping rolls either.    
  
And if they were attacked? Jester knows Oskar has a dagger in his boot and she can call in her giant lollipop again, but apart from that?   
  
“I think Molly’s right, Oskar; we don’t have what we need to get to Port Damali.”   
“Jester, I ain’t not sayin’ you ain’t right, but…”   
“I like him,” she cuts Oskar off. “Can’t we just stay here for the night at least?”   
“Yeah, alright. I guess it can’t hurt.” He doesn’t sound convinced at his own words.   
  
Jester smiles at him, then hooks their arms together and drags him back to Molly.   
  
“We’ve decided to stay the night,” she beams up at him, still holding on to Oskar.    
“Great! I’ll have Caleb find you some blankets while the others make dinner, and then you can come eat with us.”   
  
Molly wanders off in search of the dirty wizard and returns moments later.   
  
“Thank you very much, Caleb,” Oskar says when the human returns after a few minutes with a pair of blankets and even a pillow. “Much appreciated.”   
“ _ Ja _ , well…” the man trails off.   
“Yes, thank you Caleb! It is very kind of you!” See, she can be polite as well! Even though Caleb seems to be uncomfortable…    
  
“Jester?”   
“Yes Oskar?”   
“Just a word of advice; you might wanna keep your voice low. We’re right next to you after all.”   
“Oh, I’m sorry Caleb!”   
“It’s fine,” Caleb says, but he looks like he’d rather be elsewhere. “I’ll show you where you’ll sleep.”   
  
Jester smiles at him and they follow him to a cart with fabric draped over it to created shelter.   
  
“I am sorry, but this is the best we can do.”   
“That’s quite alright. Thank you again,” Oskar says, taking the blankets and pillow from him.   
“It’ll be cozy, won’t it Nott?” Jester asks her little green friend, who is only now poking out from her perch inside her hair.   
  
Caleb stares at Nott for a moment, and  _ something _ passes over his face, there for a second, but then it’s gone again and he shakes his head.   
  
“Are you alright Caleb?”   
“ _ Ja _ . I’m sorry, I just thought… Nevermind.” And then he walks off towards one of the smaller tents.    
  
Once Caleb’s gone, Jester looks over at Oskar and finds he is just as confused as she is.   
  
“Wonder what that was all about?” Oskar comments.

“He’s weird, isn’t he?” Jester asks, and shrugs when Oskar looks at her weirdly. “What, he is!”    
“Doesn’t mean you should go around sayin’ stuff like that.”   
  
Before Jester can reply, Molly calls out to them that dinner is ready, and so they wander off to join the others.    
  
Caleb doesn’t show up for a while, but Jester notices that Molly sets aside a bowl of the stew for him. And when the wizard appears, Jester studies the slight blush on his face as he takes the bowl from Molly, and the smile that appears on his lips.   
  
It’s just like how Yasha had looked at Beau earlier.   
  
\---   
  
Jester has never slept outside before.   
  
She is used to a warm, comfortable bed, stacked with pillows and soft blankets. Used to sturdy walls and windows that can be opened to let fresh air in, or kept closed to let the rain and chill out.   
  
This is very different.   
  
Especially since Jester is also used to sleeping alone, with the exception of Nott of course, but Nott takes up very little space and doesn’t always sleep in bed with her.   
But now Oskar is there next to her, his warm body so very very close to her. So close, in fact, that she barely needs to extend her arm to touch him.   
  
It’s comforting.   
  
But it’s also scary. She’s never thought about what it would be like to share a sleeping space with someone else, much less someone she only just met a few hours ago.    
According to her books, people who are in love do this.   
  
And then it always means something more.   
  
Oskar falls asleep easily, but Jester’s head is filled with thoughts.   
She thinks about everything she’s seen this day, about everyone she’s met, about how much her life has changed in such a short amount of time.    
  
Jester wonders what will happen after.   
  
They only said they would go to Port Damali. They never thought about what to do once there. Never discussed what to do after.    
Surely Oskar has plans of his own? And Jester needs to decide if she wants to go back to the tower, back to Father.   
  
Or if she’ll be brave enough to make it out here on her own.    
  
Jester dreams of The Traveler, about Father, about dancing lights and giant lollipops. About a horse that is not a horse, and a lizard who is really a girl. 


	6. Which Concerns Bonding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first two days with the Traveling Carnival of Curiosities

“Oskar, was it?” The lavender tiefling’s voice sounds next to his ear, and Fjord jumps. “Don’t worry, I’m not here to kill you. I just have a question for you.”   
“Uh, sure?”   
“You wouldn’t happen to know what happened to Yuli and Mona after you split up?”   
  
Fjord recoils, staring at Molly in disbelief.   
  
“What‘re you about?”   
“Now relax,  _ Oskar _ ,” Molly says the name like he  _ knows _ Fjord’s secret. “I know that’s not your real name and I won’t tell her, don’t worry. All I wanna know is what happened to them.”   
“I don’t know shit...”   
“Oh, I know that’s not entirely true.”   
“Lemme finish!” Fjord bites out. “I was hired to get them in and out of the place, no questions asked. They got caught stealing something, we ran, my disguise disappeared as we got through the entrance on the way out, so we split up. I ain’t seen ‘em since.” He shrugs.   
  
Molly looks thoughtful, but not in a bad way at least. Not in a ‘ _ how fast can I call the guards on this guy _ ’ way.   
  
“I don’t know what they went there for, if that helps,” Molly offers. “Some human approached us, asked for their help with a mission, gold up front. Just wanted them to retrieve something, but didn’t tell anyone but them. I told him it was up to the girls and they accepted.”   
“So he didn’t tell you they were gonna go to the castle?”   
“The castle? No. I just relied the message to Yuli and Mona; as I said, it was all up to them.”   
  
A hand lands on Fjord’s shoulder and he turns to look up at Jester. Shit, how much of that did she catch?   
  
“Hiya Oskar. What are you talking about?”   
“Oh, I was just asking Oskar here if he’s ever seen a circus performance before.” Fjord envies Molly’s casual change of topic.    
“I haven’t,” Jester exclaims, and while Fjord has already grown to like her enthusiasm, he still finds her voice to grow to be uncomfortably loud at times, especially when she gets excited about things.   
  
“Well, we gotta do something about that then! Tell you what; you help us pack up then travel with us and set up in the next place, you get to watch for free.”   
“Really?!” This time Fjord actually pulls back from the sheer volume of her voice. “Did you hear that Oskar?!”   
  
Fjord briefly wonders if sticking his fingers in his ears will help.   
  
“Yeah, sure did Jes. I don’t see why not; we’re headed the same way after all. And you’re right, we’re not equipped to travel by ourselves, and there’s safety in numbers.”   
  
What Fjord doesn’t add is that while there is safety in numbers, they also don’t know if they can trust these people, and if they can’t…? Well, then there’s no safety to be found for them.   
But Jester does have a point.    
She clearly trusts him enough to travel with him, and how can he not at least  _ try _ to do the same? They haven’t given him a reason not to trust him, and Mollymauk knows Fjord is hiding something but haven’t made any indication of using that information to get something in return.   
  
In fact, Mollymauk seems to be genuinely worried about the missing halfling women, and had seemed honest when saying that he does not know what they had been hired for.    
  
“I’ll go tell the others!” Jester exclaims as she bounces away, hair flying out after her like one of the banners on the main tent. Fjord watches her leave, and when she’s out of sight he turns back around to find Molly looking at him.   
  
Neither of them speaks, just lock eyes for a moment, and then Molly offers him a hand to help him stand up.   
  
“Come on, let’s help the others take the tents down. We should’ve left by now but I’m sure we’ll be on our way soon enough with your help.”   
“Molly…” Fjord starts, then pauses, unsure of what to say next. “Thanks.”   
  
Fjord hopes he’s able to convey all his feelings in that one word; that’s it’s not only for letting them tag along, but because Molly doesn’t blame him for what happened in Nicodranas.   
  
Molly just smiles at him and nods, then they head in seperate directions to get ready for the road.   
  
\---   
  
It hadn’t taken long for Fjord to find Molly was right; with the added help of Jester and himself they had taken down the tents and packed up quickly, and Jester’s (unexpected) strength had offered surprise and entertainment.   
  
In fact, Fjord wouldn’t be surprised if Jester would be getting an offer to join them as a performer.   
  
\---   
  
The sun climbs higher and higher in the sky as they make their way out of the forest, and they pass through villages and smaller settlements.    
They take turns riding the carts or horses and walking, and only stop to let the horses eat.   
Forest becomes open fields and farmlands, sometimes they’ll see rivers and small lakes and they take short breaks to let the horses drink their fill and to refill their waterskins.   
  
Their travel companions share stories of what they’ve seen and where they’ve been; each story more ridiculous than the last.   
  
Fjord finds it easy to discern the true stories from the fake ones, and often needs to tell Jester that she shouldn’t believe every story she hears, especially the more outrageous ones.    
But he does so gently, more as reminders than reprimands.   
  
As night falls, they stop on the outskirts of one of the larger villages, taking turns to look after the wagons and horses, while the others go to one of the inns to eat and to do some shopping.   
  
Jester skips off to look at wares, so Fjord tags along to keep her company. Well, to keep her safe, really. Nott  _ really _ isn’t able to do it, and so he appoints himself as her protector. Well,  _ their _ , really.   
  
They see Caleb exiting a store that sells books and Fjord thinks he looks vacant and disappointed, mind somewhere else entirely.   
In fact, Caleb is so absent minded that he walks straight into Molly, who just exited the store across the street and only Molly’s quick reflexes stops Caleb from falling to the ground.   
  
Molly’s hands hold Caleb’s arms, supporting him, and there is now a very clear blush at the human’s face.    
Both Jester and Fjord are too far away to hear what Molly’s saying, but it’s clear that Caleb’s avoiding eye contact and he is instead staring intently at the ground and Molly’s hands still rest on his arms.   
  
Fjord and Jester exchange a look, and there’s a smirk on Jester’s face that tells Fjord that she knows something he doesn’t in regards to the scene in front of them.   
  
“You see anythin’ you want?” Fjord asks her, deciding to give Molly and Caleb privacy.   
“Yes.” The word comes out almost too fast; the words are barely past his own lips before she replies. “Over there.”   
  
Jester points towards a stall that sells baked goods, some of which Fjord have seen before.   
  
“Alright. Wanna go check it out?”   
“I would like to,” Jester starts, her voice demure for once. “But I don’t have any money.”   
“That’s alright Jes. I’ll get you to some. You’ve never had anythin’ like this before, right? So lemme treat you to a new experience. It’ll be our own lil’ adventure,” he replies, and winks at her.    
  
She cocks her head to the side for a moment, just looking at him, as though trying to find an answer on his face, in his eyes.   
  
“Okay!” she says, then takes his arm again like she had done the previous day and drags him off to the stall.   
  
At this time of the day, there’s not much left on the cart, but Fjord spots some donuts and figure they might as well be the place to start.   
  
“I’ll have the last four donuts please,” he says, and pays the silver it costs him. It’s not too expensive; he has seen far steeper prices back in Nicodranas. Fjord hands them all to Jester. “Here you go.”    
“What? No, but Oskar, I can’t take them all! What about you?”   
“I’m fine Jester. Don’t you worry about me. I’ve had donuts before; these here are for you.”   
“Are you sure?”   
“Yeah, I’m sure.”   
  
Any regret he might have possibly felt at spending money on donuts of all things, rather than actual food that would have lasted them longer, vanishes when he sees the look of pure bliss on Jester’s face as she bites into one of the donuts.   
  
Her eyes fall closed, she somehow grins around the bite she’s taken and a not-so-small moan escapes her.   
  
“Oh my god, Oskar! Have you ever tasted anything this delicious before?!”   
“I thought I had, but now I’m not so sure anymore,” he replies and smiles at her obvious enjoyment, as well as to hide his reaction to the sound she just made.   
“Here, you have to try it!”    
  
Before he gets the chance to even try to stop her, she’s shoved one of the donuts into his mouth.   
Fjord sputters around it, tries not to choke on it, but even as he does, he notices that Jester is right; it really is delicious.   
  
“You’re right,” he tells her once he’s managed to swallow the whole thing. “Don’t think I’ve tasted a lot of stuff that’s as good as this.”   
“I’m always right,” Jester says, grinning. “Here you go Nott,” she adds, breaking a bit off of one of the other donuts and offering it to the little creature who grabs it and greedily eats it before holding her small hands (feet? Fjord doesn’t know) for more.    
  
Jester laughs. “See, even Nott agrees!”   
  
“Who’s Nott and what do they agree to?” Molly’s voice suddenly rings out from besides them and they both jump as neither had heard him approach. It takes them a moment to realise Caleb’s right behind Molly, following close but not engaging them in conversation.   
  
“This is Nott,” Jester answers and hold Nott out for Molly to see.    
  
The small creature seems to very much prefer hiding away behind Jester’s hair, and moves to bite Molly when he tries to touch her, just like she had done to Fjord the first time they met. It makes him laugh, and so he doesn’t notice the odd look passing over Caleb’s face; just the same as the day before when Jester had said Nott’s name for the first time in Caleb’s presence.    
  
\---   
  
Fjord wakes up the following morning, spitting out saltwater.    
  
It burns his lungs and throat, he’s gasping for air, hands clutching at the fabric on the bedroll under him, and then a hand in on his back, offering support and comfort and Fjord looks over to see Jester looking over at him worriedly.    
  
“Oskar, are you okay?”   
  
For a moment, Fjord just stares at her, not understanding at first why she called him Oskar, but then it dawns on him and he nods in reply.   
  
“Yeah. Just had a bad dream ‘s all.”   
“But that doesn’t explain why you’re coughing up water! And it smells really weird, like... salt?” Jester’s voice changes at the end, turning the statement into a question.    
“It’s briney. Saltwater,” he clarifies.   
“That’s even worse! We’re not near the ocean, right?” She bites her lip in worry, drawing a few drops of blood that makes Fjord yearn to reach out and dry away with his thumb.   
“Not as far as I know. Think we’re more inland.”   
  
Her look of worry shifts to a glare.   
  
“This could be serious Oskar!”   
“I’m fine, Jess. I promise.”   
“Oh no! What if you turn into water? You won’t do that, will you Oskar? I don’t think I have a jar big enough to keep you in if you do!”   
  
Fjord tries his very best not to laugh at that.   
  
It sounds like such a far-fetched thought, that he should actually turn into saltwater; the thought would have never crossed his mind if Jester hadn’t brought it up.   
But to laugh would be rude, especially since she shows such concern for him already and they only met two days ago, and not under the best circumstances.   
  
“Now, I don’t think that’s gonna happen. But if I think I’m gonna turn into water,” he adds hurriedly, as she looks to be about to protest, “then I’ll tell you so you can help me. Sound good?”   
“Okay Oskar. I’ll make sure it won’t happen.”   
“Thanks Jes.”   
  
Jester looks at him again, and there’s something in her eyes that he can’t put into words.   
  
“Oh, you’re up. Good. We’re about to get moving again.” Beau’s voice calls out to them from the end of the wagon. They had been too occupied to hear her approach, but they both shift their attention to her as she speaks. “Uh, I didn’t, like, interrupt something?”   
“Nah, it’s cool. I just woke up from a nightmare, ’s all.”   
“Uhu…” Beau doesn’t look like she believes his words, and only then does Fjord notice that Jester’s hand is still on him, now having moved down to grasp his arm. “Whatever you say, big guy.”   
  
Beau walks off then, muttering something under her breath than neither of them hears.   
  
\---   
  
They spend the next couple days like this.    
  
During the day, they move through the changing landscape, the mountains growing larger and larger the further north they get.    
Apart from that, it’s the same as they passed through the previous day, with farmland and forests, villages and settlements, but they get closer and closer to the ocean.   
  
The night before they stop outside a town to set up the tent for a show, the wind picks up and Fjord can smell the ocean.   
  
Going to sleep that night is difficult, as he expects the wind will bring with it more dreams of being submerged, and so he stays awake longer than he should, listening to Jester and the members of the circus talk about everything and nothing.   
  
Jester doesn’t have much to share in terms of experiences, but she more than makes up for it by talking about the books she’s read.   
It’s clear that Tusk Love is her favourite by far, and so she goes on and on about it.   
  
“You said the half-orc’s named Oskar?” Beau asks, and while the words are directed at Jester, her eyes are on Fjord. In fact, when she brings it up, everyone who’s still awake does the same. He tries his darndest not to squirm.   
  
“Oh yes! I think it must have been a sign from The Traveler,” Jester says animatedly, nodding as she speaks. “That he sent me my own Oskar to take me to Port Damali.”   
“You mean, like, like fate or something? Beau asks again, now looking at Jester.   
“No, I mean that The Traveler sent Oskar my way!”   
  
Beau looks back to Fjord, looking at him as though she expects him to make sense of it, and he shrugs, indicating he is just as confused as her.   
  
“That’s… great,” Beau says, sounding the furthest thing from convinced, but Jester doesn’t seem to realise at all.   
“The Traveler is the best you guys! He kept me company and taught me pranks - though I haven’t tried to do any yet…”   
“Oh, maybe you could try it tomorrow! When we get to that town we’re performing in!” Beau sounds excited now at the prospect of pranks. “We could like, create a distraction to help you out!”   
  
Jester lights up at that.   
  
“Sure, why not!” Molly chimes in. “I’m always a fan of distractions.” As he says the last part he winks at Caleb, who is sitting across the bonfire from Molly, and Fjord knows the colour of Caleb’s cheeks is not a product of the heat of the fire in front of him.   
  
\---   
  
Fjord doesn’t dream of his patron that night, does not dream of being dragged underwater, fearing he’ll drown, staring into the large, yellow eye of the beast of an unfathomable size.   
  
Instead, he dreams of Jester.   
  
He dreams of watching her pull pranks on people wherever they go; swapping salt and sugar, moving things around on the shelves, exchanging the price tags on various items and making a large stack in the middle of a store, with every book from every shelf.   
  
Fjord dreams of himself helping.   
  
He dreams of Beau and Molly and Yasha and Caleb creating distractions as he helps Jester reach the topmost shelves, of Yasha looking at Beau with a small,  secretive smile, of Caleb blushing at Molly’s obvious advances but not rejecting them.   
  
Fjord does not dream about the rest of the members of the carnival.   
  
Instead he dreams of a small green creature and a brown and red horse traveling with them, with Beau and Yasha, and Caleb and Molly.   
Of the eight of them happy together, out on adventures of their own.


	7. Which Concerns Thaumathurgy, Flowers and Jewelry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that took so long! I just struggled a lot with what I wanted to do with this chapter, and where I wanted it to go, and at one point I had two varying versions of this chapter, because of that /one bit/ I was so unsure of

Jester is practically vibrating with excitement and energy.   
She’s bouncing in place, tail flitting around, tangling up in her hair but she doesn’t care.    
  
The main tent has just been set up, the streamers moving with the breeze which cools the unseasonably warm air.   
They are all gathered inside the colourful tent, where Gustav is delegating tasks for the day.   
  
Molly and Yasha are usually the ones who draws attention to the carnival by handing out flyers, but Jester and Oskar have been given permission to join them, with Caleb and Beau tagging along to get supplies.   
The rest of the group is staying behind to get things set up for the performance in the evening.   
  
Oskar is for once not disguising himself, and Jester likes seeing him as he actually is.   
  
\---   
  
“Why do you do that?” she had asked him the first time he did it, which had been before they passed through the first settlement after joining the Carnival.   
“Do what?”   
“Disguise yourself! No one else does it. Oh, should I start doing it too?”   
“Oh, that. Right.” Oskar had coughed and looked away from her before answering. “I just like practicing it, ‘s all.”   
“Is that why you do the voices too?”   
“Yeah.”   
  
Jester had fallen silent for a while.   
  
“Oskar?”   
“Yeah, Jes?”   
“It’s not that you don’t like yourself, right? I mean,” she had quickly continued before Oskar could reply, ”you don’t do it because you don’t like being without tusks?”   
“Now where’d you get that idea?”   
  
She had gnawed at her lip, drawing blood before speaking up again.   
  
“Well, I haven’t actually seen that many half-orcs, well, only you and Bo really, but I know that your kind usually have tusks, and you don’t, so I wondered maybe that you wished you had them, maybe?”   
“Jes, I… I have tusks. Kinda. It’s...”   
  
Sensing a shift in his voice, she had placed a hand on his arm in comfort.   
  
“It’s okay Oskar. You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to.”   
“Thanks, Jes.”   
  
\---   
  
It’s hard not to compare Oskar to Bo, as they’re the only half-orcs she’s ever seen, but Jester tries not to do so, as it would be like comparing herself to Molly, or Caleb and Beau, just because they’re the same race.   
  
Still, Jester can’t help but wonder what Oskar had meant when he said he’s “kinda” got tusks.   
  
Today though, today her focus is on the carnival.   
  
She’s borrowing a dress from one of the trunks of costumes the carnival carts around; it’s blue and white with pink flowers on the sleeves and skirt. It makes her feel pretty, and the blue matches her hair and skin perfectly.    
  
Nott is perched on her shoulder as always, as they all  gather in the main tent where Gustav proceeds to tell them about their plan for the day, saying they’ll be one performance short as Yuli and Mona have yet to catch up with them.   
  
It puts an idea into Jester’s head.   
  
“Can’t someone else perform instead?” Jester asks, head tipped to the side as she looks at the leader, then turns to the other tiefling. “Molly, what about you?”   
“Ah, I’m afraid I’m not that kind of performer my dear,” Molly replies and winks at Caleb, though his words are directed at Jester.     
  
Someone touches her braid, and Jester turns around to find Beau looking at her thoughtfully.   
  
“You able to, like, do something with this?”   
“What do you mean Beau?”    
“Like, can you, I don’t know, use it to fling yourself around or something?”   
“Oh, that! Yes, I can do that. Why?”   
  
Beau raises an eyebrow at her.   
  
“I think what Beau’s  _ tryin’ _ to ask,” Oskar says, casting a quick glance over at Beau, “is can you perform?”   
“Oooooh, you want me to perform with you guys?! I could probably do that, probably.”    
“Thank you for offering, Jester,” Gustav says, “but I don’t think it’s such a good idea to have you perform not only on such short notice, and certainly without you having practiced at first.”   
  
Saying the rejection doesn’t hurt would be a lie.   
  
“That’s not a problem. I actually used to do it a lot at home, actually!”   
“You… did?”    
“Yes.”    
“It’s not that unusual,” Oskar interjects. “Not that different from swinging around in ropes on ships.”   
“You’re a seaman?”   
  
Beau and Molly bursts into laughter at that.   
  
“I was a  _ sailor _ , yes,” Oskar starts. “Not for a few years, although I did swing around a lot, growing up on my dad’s ship.”   
“Oh, so you could perform with me?” Jester’s fully turned to Oskar, leaning towards him, hoping she can talk him into this.   
“Now, I’m not so sure that’s a good idea Jester...”   
  
The sudden lack of the use of a nickname sends a burst of sadness through her.   
  
“Okay, then I can do it myself then!”   
“Hmm, well… You’ll have to try it out first, see if you can do it. And if I say you can’t, then you listen to me.”   
“WHOOOO!”   
  
They get permission to leave then, and break into three groups as they reach the town; Jester with Oskar, Molly and Yasha, and Caleb with Beau.   
  
Jester does not miss the look Molly sends Caleb, nor the way Beau looks at Yasha.   
  
It’s the largest town they’ve passed through so far, and Jester thinks it anything but small until Oskar tells her that compared to the rest of the towns along the Menagerie Coast, this one is small.   
  
Oskar leads her through the streets until they find a tavern.   
  
There aren’t many people there yet, and those who are inside are either eating breakfast or playing cards.    
  
“What now Oskar?”   
“Now we do as Molly said; we get their attention and…”    
“I use thaumaturgy to open all the windows!”   
  
All the windows and shutters slam against the wall with a heavy thud, the lights flicker and almost goes out before flaring back up again.   
  
“Hiiii, I’m Jester!” she exclaims, as there is now no sound coming from within the tavern, and all eyes are turned towards them. “We’re here to tell you to come see the carnival!”   
“What my, uhm, compatriot here means, is that we’re here with the Fletching and Moondrop Traveling Carnival of Curiosities. We’re here in this, uh, fine establishment to invite you all to come see us tonight.”   
  
Some eyes stays on them, while others turn back to their previous engagements.   
  
They walk through the tavern, handing out flyers at each table. When ignored, Jester just places a flyer on the table and moves on to the next, not one to be dissuaded.    
  
“I’m sorry about that,” Oskar says as they pass by the bar on their way out. “It’s her first time doing this, and she got a bit excited.”   
  
The barmaid scowls at them until Oskar hands her a silver piece, and then she’s all smiles and assures them that it’s all okay, that they could use some excitement now and again. What bothers Jester isn’t her sudden change of tone; it’s the way she eyes Oskar as they leave, with a gleam of interest and a complete disregard for Jester’s own presence.   
  
So Jester looks at the woman, makes sure she gains eye contact, before hanging on to Oskar’s arm as they leave  _ together _ .    
  
“That was fun! Let’s find a new place!”   
“Now, Jester…”   
“Yes Oskar?”   
“Maybe you shouldn’t to that again. I don’t think it’s such a good idea to, you know, use magic to open all the windows. You might end up damaging somethin’, or hurtin’ someone.”   
“Oh. Okay, I won’t do that then.”   
  
He smiles at her, and it leaves her feeling warm.   
  
“Now, let’s go find another place to spread the word. Shall we?”   
  
She clings to his arm again as they wander down another street, until they find an inn. Entering it, they find a slightly larger crowd than at the tavern, as there are travelers in here who are renting rooms above. Apart from that, the interior is much the same, with wooden tables stained with ale, torches along the walls and very sparse in terms of decorations.    
  
“I use thaumathurgy to spread the flyers around!”   
“Jes, we talked about this,” Oskar says, but it’s too late, as the flyers are now drifting through the large room.   
  
Some lands on the floor and tables, while others land in tankards or on plates of food.   
  
“You only said I shouldn’t open the windows,” Jester says, then skips ahead into the inn to talk people into coming to their performance.   
  
It goes both better and worse than in the last place.   
  
Jester sees some people glower at her, but she just smiles at them, showing her fangs and tell them how much it would mean to have them come see the performances later that night, and how honoured it would make her.   
  
Oskar apologizes again as they leave, but doesn’t leave any coin behind this time.   
  
“How do you think Molly and Yasha’s doing?” She asks him as they step outside onto the street, looking around to see if there are any interesting places nearby.   
“Well, I don’t think they’re as good as you when it comes to getting everyone’s attention…”   
  
Jester beams up at him.   
  
“Look, all I am saying is that you should get her some,” the familiar zemnian accent comes from around the corner. “She likes them,  _ ja _ ?”   
“Yeah, but like… Are you sure it won’t be like, weird or something?”   
“Beauregard,” Caleb sighs, “they are just flowers. They don’t have to mean anything unless you want them to.”   
“Right. Yeah. Okay.”   
  
She looks at Oskar, raising one eyebrow at him.   
  
“What about you then?” Beau says, still invisible around the corner of the building. “You gonna get Molly a lil’ something?   
“I do not know what you are talking about,” Caleb says, voice clipped, and Jester just  _ knows _ there’s a visible blush creeping up his face.   
  
Jester might only recently have met Caleb, but she’s seen his reactions when it comes to Molly often enough to know there’s something there.   
  
“Caleb, come on dude. Don’t act like you don’t know!”   
“Did you ask Oskar or Jester the same thing?”   
“Don’t change the subject Caleb. We’re talking about you and Molly here.”   
  
There’s a slight pause, in which Jester once again looks at Oskar, but he is looking away pointedly.    
  
“She will have a handful of white violets,” Caleb says, and it’s clear he is talking to someone else.   
  
Oskar and Jester rounds the corner, pretending not to have overheard their conversation. Just then, Beau is handed the flowers from a stall, and it’s a small bouquet of white flowers Jester’s never seen before.   
  
“Hi Caleb, hi Beau!” she exclaims as they draw near. “Ooooh, what are those?”   
“They’re… flowers?”   
“Yes, I can see that! Who are they for?” Jester can practically feel the way her own eyes are shining, always a sign of her curiosity, she’s learnt.   
“Uuuuuh, they’re for me, actually,” Beau says.   
  
Even though she’s trying to act normal, it’s evident (even if she hadn’t overheard the conversation) to Jester that Beau’s lying.   
  
“Okay Beau,” Jester says, nodding as though she believes her. “Are you done now?”   
“We’ve a couple more stops, why?”   
“Oh, nothing. We just finished giving out all our flyers but I wanna see more of the town before we head back.”   
  
Beau’s eyes widen at that.    
  
“You’re done already?!” she asks, sounding surprised. “How’d you even…?”   
“I’m actually pretty good at it, actually!”   
  
Oskar coughs, trying to hide a laugh.   
  
“Uhu…” Beau looks at Jester with narrowed eyes. “Okay.”   
“Would you like to join us?” Caleb asks. “We are meeting up with Mollymauk and Yasha once they are done promoting.”   
“Yes, we could to that. Right Oskar?”    
“Yeah, sure. Why not.”   
  
They walk through the streets, Caleb and Beau obviously looking for something specific but not sure of where to find it.   
  
At one point, they pass a store which sells jewelry, and Jester sees Caleb study the contents visible through the window, and she’s reminded of the earlier conversation. From what Jester’s learnt of Molly based on their very short time knowing each other, the other tiefling seems to have a preference for jewelry, and so it would make sense for Caleb to give him a piece of it.   
Even if Caleb doesn’t think he should.   
  
So Jester comes up with a plan.   
  
“I want to look in there!” she exclaims, pointing towards the store when the others turns to look at her.    
“Why do you want that Jester?” Caleb asks, as he is the one closest to her.   
“Well, Molly has all these shinies in his horns and rings on his fingers and I want some too.”   
  
Oskar looks at her.   
  
“You know it’s not that cheap, right?” he asks her, his voice almost too gentle.   
“I do, yes. But I only said I wanted to look. You don’t have you join us, Oskar. You and Beau can go buy what you need and then Caleb and I will join you after.”    
  
She drags Caleb with her as she speaks, leaving the human wizard with no choice in the matter.   
  
“A’igh, see you soon then,” she hears Oskar say as the door closes behind them.   
  
The store is small, but well stocked. Even with her limited experience, Jester can see this is not the most fanciest nor expensive place, but the selection is good and they even have some pieces that can fit over horns, which she had not expected.   
  
“May I help you?” a voice rings out, and a young gnome appears, with dark red hair and vibrant green eyes. She carries a squirrel on her shoulders, much like Jester herself carries Nott around.   
“Yes, hello there,” Caleb starts. “My friend here is…”   
“Well, actually, Caleb here is looking for a gift, actually,” Jester says.   
  
Out of the corner of her eye she can see Caleb turn towards her, questions burning in his eyes.   
  
“Anything in particular?” the gnome asks. “Or would you like some suggestions perhaps?”   
“Do you have anything that can fit a tiefling? He likes both gold and silver.”   
“We do have some fine pieces for horns, yes,” she says, and guides them over to a box with a glass lid.    
  
Jester leans over to examine the pieces, and only then notices Caleb’s still standing where they entered.    
  
“Caleb, what are you over there for? I’m helping you find a gift for Molly; you need to look at these yourself!” She then turns to the gnome.   
“I’m Jester,” she says, holding her hand out. “And my green friend is Nott.”   
“You can call me Nyx-Orla,” the gnome replies. “And this is Cara.”   
  
A small squeak gains her attention, and she turns to see that Nott is now climbing down Jester’s arm.    
  
“Nott, what are you doing?” she asks her friend, but there is no reply, of course, and s second later, Nott is on the glass case, and the squirrel lands next to her a moment later.   
“Cara, behave,” Nyx-Orla says.   
  
A series of squeaks comes from the small creatures, almost like they’re talking, but surely a lizard and a squirrel doesn’t speak the same language?   
Jester descides to ignore them, and clearly Nyx-Orla does the same.    
  
“That is a really nice piece!” Jester says, pointing towards a set of horn ornaments.   
  
It’s made of silver, decorated with diamonds, and flowers made from pearls and other gemstones. There’s a chain running from the part that goes around the horn - easily mistaken for a V-shaped bracelet - to the ear, where it turns into yet another chain from which a ruby in the shape of a drop dangles.   
  
A flash of recognition runs through her at the sight of it, like lightning runs through a tree and chars it from the inside.    
  
“Are you alright Jester?” Caleb asks, now standing by her side, looking at the same piece of jewelry. “You looked… gone, for a moment.”   
“I’m okay,” she replies, though she feels out of sorts, and her voice carries her feelings.    
  
Nott is tugging at her sleeve to get her attention, and Jester reaches out to pick her up again, as Cara jumps back onto Nyx-Orla’s shoulder.   
  
“We only acquired that piece a day ago. I wish I could tell you anything about it, but I don’t know who made it or where it is from.”   
“Do you maybe have anything with, maybe an amethyst or something? Maybe?” Jester asks, wanting to return to the matter at hand and not focus on the ornament that upset her for some unknown reason. “It doesn’t have to be for his horns. Maybe a ring? Or something for his tail?”   
  
Nyx-Orla leads them over to another case, filled with piercings.   
  
“What about these ones then? While not made specifically for a tail, I have been told they work in that matter as well.”    
“How about this one Caleb?”   
  
Jester points to a piece shaped as a ring, made out of silver with pieces of amethyst standing out all around. The pieces are shaped like the rays of the sun, much like one of Molly’s ornaments, the one that hangs from his right horn and is gold and red.   
  
“Jester, I do not know…”   
“Oh, come on Caleb! Beau is right you know? He liiiiikes you,” she says the last part in sing-song tone. “Just like Beau likes Yasha but doesn’t believe you when you say Yasha likes her back.”   
  
Caleb stiffens at that.   
  
“He’ll take it,” Jester says to Nyx-Orla, not caring what Caleb thinks, because she knows that Molly and Caleb like one another but aleb is too daft to act on it and doesn’t realise Molly only ever flirts with him.   
  
And if she can notice it in such a short while, then…   
  
Caleb buys it, breaking under the pressure of the knowledge that Jester won’t leave him alone until he does.   
Jester, meanwhile, tries her best to ignore the piece she had first laid eyes on.   
  
Shortly thereafter, they meet up with Oskar, Beau, Molly and Yasha, and head back to the carnival.   
  
\---   
  
The performers of the carnival are all dressed up now, in their fancy clothes and makeup, and Molly looks even more flashy than usual; only Caleb, Yasha and Beau looks the same as always.    
Well, Caleb looks  _ clean _ , for once, though he still maintains his scruff.   
  
They’re about to parade through the streets, to draw the crowd with them towards the tent.   
  
Jester’s hair is braided for the night, courtesy of some girls from the village who had practically  _ begged _ to be allowed to do so, and it’s been covered in flowers she had picked on the road the day before.   
  
It feels weird, she thinks, to not have all the hair trail behind her.   
  
She’s even got some makeup on, which Molly had helped her with as she had lamented feeling left out in that department. Well, to be fair, it’s not so much makeup as glitter in her hair and on her skin, which makes it shimmer like starlight.   
  
Jester loves it.   
  
“Everyone ready?” Gustav asks, and get enthusiastic replies from everyone, except from Caleb, who seems nervous, and Yasha, who never sounds excited about anything. “Then let us go out there, and give the crowd what they want!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> White violet: Let’s take a chance on happiness
> 
> \--
> 
> The looks of the gnome in the jewelry store is based on my own D&D character, who is a forest gnome and arcane trickster (in other words, I made her, and THEN found out she's kind of a mix of Sam's characters from both campaigns, which is...yeah). Her full name is "Ella" Nyx-Orla Roywyn Folkor, and her squirrel's name is Caramip
> 
> The "hornament" is, of course, mainly based on the tiara from the Tangled movie, though in silver rather than gold to fit Jester's colouration, and the ruby in the shape of a drop is a representation of her mother - The Ruby of the Sea. The shape of the part that goes around the horn is shaped like the silver piece on Molly's right horn, to match the shape of the actual tiara


	8. In Which There is Dancing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For added "flavour"; bring up the Kingdom Dance track from the movie so you can listen to it when you reach That Scene ;)

Fjord watches Jester, watches the way she flits about excitedly and struggles even more with staying in one place for more than a second.    
Seeing her like this, well, it makes him happy. There’s nothing wrong about that, right? Jester’s his friend, and friends are happy for one another.   
  
But he can’t ignore the way his heart speeds up when he looks at her.   
  
Knowing Jester’s been locked up all her life, that she’s been denied friends and experiences and freedom… It makes Fjord want to give her all that.   
He wants her to experience everything she can, to see as many places and make as many friends as possible.    
  
To eat as many different baked goods as she can.   
  
He still thinks blindly trusting the circus crew is the wrong move, but he can’t fault her for it, as she’s never been allowed to learn anything.    
Fjord hopes nothing will happen that will break whatever bond’s forming, not only between himself and Jester, but with the others as well.   
  
And, despite his mistrust, Fjord has to admit it’s nice being around people again.   
  
He likes meeting new people, likes not seeing the same weathered faces day and and day out, the same traders coming in with their shipments. It’s nice to not always know what to expect of the new day, to find little surprises in everything.   
  
Jester though, Jester is the biggest surprise of them all.   
  
From the moment he laid eyes on her, he’s felt a connection that he can’t put into words. And the more he gets to know her, the happier he is that he took on the assignment that went wrong, or else they would never have met, and Jester would have stayed locked away in her tower.   
  
The mere thought that her father would have kept her locked away from the world makes him mad.   
  
And it makes Fjord even more determined to experience as much as he can with her, as he fears someone will catch up to them eventually and take him to prison and Jester to her own. Gilded or not, a cage is still a cage.   
  
At the moment, Jester is absolutely radiant.   
  
Her hair is in a long braid, and in the dark the flowers through it makes it look like cast galaxies on the night sky. The glitter on her face, some of which is caught in the hair framing her face, only enhances the effect.   
  
She’s twirling around in her new dress, showing off to him.   
  
It takes Fjord a moment to realise she’s talking to him, and he blinks, shifting her into focus as she looks up at him, leaning into his space, almost too close for comfort.    
  
“I’m sorry Jes, you said something?”   
“Do you like my dress Oskar?”    
“Oh, uh, yeah, ‘s real pretty.” Well, that could’ve come out better…   
  
Gustav comes up to them then, interrupting whatever Jester had been about to say.   
  
“Alright Jester, you’re free to perform tonight.”   
“Thank you Gustav!” Jester exclaims, and throws herself at Gustav, giving him a bone crushing hug, based on the sounds coming from the circus leader.   
“Now, we’re all going to be in the parade tonight, and so I need the two of you to tell me what you can do out there for a bit of show.”   
  
Jester lets go of the poor man and he straightens himself up as Fjord thinks about what he can do, what he knows that he can use to give the crowd a show.   
  
One thing spring to mind, but before he can speak up, Jester does so.   
  
“I could cast Invoke Duplicity and have a mirror image of myself dance around! Oh, or I could summon my large lollipop and make it float over us!”   
“I think maybe that copy of you would work best,” Gustav says. ”Oskar, what about you?”   
“Oh, well,” he starts, not really sure how to tell anyone about it as he’s never done so before, “But, uh, I can summon my sword from thin air.”   
  
As he speaks, Fjord summons his falchion, covered in barnacles and dripping salt water.   
  
“Whoa! That is so cool!” Jester shouts, drawing the attention of the few other members of the circus in the tent. “You guys, did you see that?!”   
“ _ Ja _ , I did. How did you…?”   
  
To everyone’s surprise, Caleb is the first to speak up.   
  
“Honestly? I have no idea. I could just do it, one day. Dunno where it came from.”   
“Could I…?” Yasha is the next to speak up, which is another surprise, and she reaches for his sword as she asks.   
  
Fjord hands it over to her, watching as she tests it before handing it back.   
  
“It’s a nice sword,” she says, and Fjord can hear that she means it.    
“Thank you. I find I quite like it.”   
“But where did it come from?” Jester asks. “Did you spit it out like you do with seawater?”   
  
They all blink at her, then shifts their focus back to Fjord.   
  
“As I said, I don’t where it came from. I didn’t even know I could do that until a lil’ while ago. ‘s all still new to me.”   
  
It’s not an outright lie, as far as truths go, but it’s not the truth either. Fjord doesn’t know where it comes from, nor how it came to be his.    
All he remembers is waking up on the shore, the falchion at his side. His memory from that time is so hazy he can’t remember how he found he can summon and send the sword away, nor how he ended up on the shore in the first place.   
  
There’s a small chunk of his memory missing, and he never went out to sea again after that.   
  
“Would you like to find out?” Caleb asks him, voice as careful as ever, although there is a sound of genuine interest to his voice. “I could see if I can find out anything. If you want to.”   
“Thank you, Caleb. I appreciate that. Lemme think about it.”    
“ _ Ja _ , okay.  _ Gut _ .” Caleb walks away then, to go back to whatever it was he’d been doing before the interruption.   
  
“Everyone ready?” Gustav asks them. “Then let’s get out there, and give the crowd what they want!”

  
\---   
  
They all file out onto the streets.    
  
The sky is painted red and pink and orange, the air beginning to cool slightly and the Crown’s Guard are out lighting the lamps for the night.   
  
Gustav takes point, and Jester follows him with her duplicate, taking up the space where Mona and Yuli usually walks. Both versions of her carry flowers and more flyers. Behind her is Ornna, ready to breathe fire into the air, then Desmond playing the violin, followed by Bo who plays the drum.   
  
Molly follows behind them, juggling his scimitars in the air, pretending to almost lost one only to catch it again, just in time.   
  
Fjord walks behind Molly, summoning his falchion, waving it around to make the water create arches, catching on the light reflected by the orbs of Dancing Lights created by Caleb, who is taking up the rear with Beau and Yasha.    
Then he sends it away again, only to summon it back a moment later, repeating the motion as they walk through the streets.   
  
Ahead of him, Fjord sees both Jester’s hand out flowers to children and flyers to adults.   
  
Fire lights up the area as Ornna breathes out a large gust of flames, and the impressed sounds from the onlookers fill the air. The music weaves around them, and now Fjord himself feels the excitement he’s sure Jester’s felt ever since her feet touched grass for the first time.   
  
As they approach the tent, followed by a crowd of eager villagers, the music shifts, transforms as more instruments join the violin and drum. Fjord suspects it’s a local tune, as he’s not heard it himself and because the villagers seem even more eager now.   
  
Before he can react, the space outside the main tent becomes an impromptu dance floor.   
  
People swirl around, gathering up others in a dance clearly made specifically for this melody, as more and more couples join in, dancing alone at first, then with the others, as they change partners throughout the dance as it flows and swells with energy.   
  
Then Jester takes his hand and Fjord is dragged into the fray.   
  
The steps are easy enough to follow as Jester leads him through it, clearly having picked up on the way it goes. Moments later they’re forced apart, dragged into the switching of partners, dancing further and further away from one another, then almost close enough to reach but not quite.

 

It grows, swells again.

 

Faster and faster, as the gathered crowd claps and stomps their feet to the music. Fjord’s heart beats in time with the drum, but louder and then faster as the music grows even faster. His fingertips brush against Jester’s, still just out of reach, before they’re swept away again.   
  
The dancing crowd moves ever faster, spinning around until they’re all dizzy and Fjord worries he’ll faint if it goes on like this.   
  
Out of the corner of his eye, he can spot Molly dragging a reluctant Caleb along to dance at the outskirts of the crowd and Beau tapping her foot to the melody before he is once again spun away from them.   
  
Fjord spins and spins and then, just as the music stops, Jester is there in his arms.   
  
They grab hold of one another as they’ve done with their other dancepartners, expecting the melody to go on, but it doesn’t.   
For a moment, the world seems to freeze, the two of them flush together, staring into the eyes of one another.   
Fjord opens his mouth to speak, to tell her his real name and how he came to find her.   
  
Then the crowd cheers and the spell is broken.   
  
They look at their hands, still clasped to continue the dance, and both step away at the same time, feeling awkward and out of sorts. Fjord can see it on Jester’s face, but she’s quick to hide it behind a large smile that almost swallows up her face.   
  
“Wasn’t that fun Oskar?” she asks him as the crowd disperse around them.   
“Yeah, it was,” he admits.  _ I have to tell you something _ . The words stay a thought, not a sentence as he wishes he could muster the courage to give sound to the words.   
  
“Jester, Oskar, time to get ready,” Gustav says. “Jester, you go with Ornna. Oskar, go find Molly and tell him that he’s on card duty tonight.”   
  
Gustav then turns to the crowd to address them.   
  
“You’ll watch me perform, right?” Jester asks him before they split up.   
“Yeah, sure. Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Fjord replies, hoping he’ll be able to stomach it.   
  
When he’d watched her practice earlier that day, he had chickened out, worried she would hurt herself falling down, despite her constant reassurances she’s been doing this for years. After all, the height of this tent is quite different from the one in her tower.    
And so he had left moments after she’d started flinging herself around, torn between wanting to be there to catch her in case she fell, and not being able to bear the thought that he’d not be able to reach her in time.   
  
Fjord goes off to find Mollymauk.   
  
It proves to be difficult, and no matter where Fjord looks, he can’t seem to find the man. So he ends up asking the few members of the circus who aren’t too occupied, and finds no one knows where the lavender tiefling’s disappeared to.    
  
Nor, as it turns out, do they know where Caleb is.   
  
Fjord finds them at last, at the very outskirts of their camp. They’re seated at a log, faced away from the tents and neither notice him approaching.    
Caleb is hunched over, one of Molly’s hands on his shoulder. A single globe of light illuminates them, allowing for Caleb to see in the darkness.    
  
Molly’s speaking in a hushed voice, and Fjord can’t hear what he’s saying.   
  
Truth be told, he is glad he can’t, because that would feel too much like eavesdropping.    
As he watches, Molly turns more towards Caleb, taking both of the wizard’s hands in his own, kissing each hand as he does.   
Caleb turns a bit more towards Molly, but still seems closed off.   
  
“Caleb,” Molly breathes the name out and he sounds so… Fjord can’t quite name the emotion he hears in his voice. “Please look at me.”   
  
Fjord watches as Caleb finally turns towards Molly, raising his head but not quite making eye contact.   
  
“Caleb, darling. Talk to me please?” The wizard shakes his head in reply, but doesn’t make a move to leave or to remove his hands from Molly’s.    
It’s an internal battle, Fjord finds, wanting to see what happens before he intrudes, yet wanting to speak up before he is discovered.    
“Can you look at me then?” Molly’s voice is soft, gentle, as though he is afraid he’ll scare Caleb away. “I worry about you, you know.”   
  
Fjord can see Caleb lift his head, ever so slowly to look into Molly’s eyes for a moment.   
  
Something seems to shift then, as the world stills, only this time it’s Caleb and Molly who is the center, and Fjord is nothing more than an onlooker. A witness.   
Caleb’s breath hitches, and he seems to be at war with himself before finally makes a decision.    
  
Caleb leans in and kisses Molly.   
  
Molly seems to melt into it at once, and in the dim light Fjord can see the signs that Molly’s clearly wanted this to happen for a long time, and now that it finally has, he’ll not let Caleb go.    
One of Molly’s hands settle at the nape of Caleb’s neck as either one or both of them deepen the kiss (it’s impossible for Fjord to tell), and both of Caleb’s hands move to first stroke over Molly’s arms before settling in his hair, tangling the curls between his fingers.   
  
Fjord decides he really ought to leave now.   
  
As he walks away, he runs into Beau (well, to tell the truth, Beau literally runs into him), and he almost falls to the ground from the impact.   
  
“Have you seen Molly or Caleb?” She asks him, eyes darting about. “The show’s about to start and…”   
“Oh, uh, yeah… I...” ah shit, he can feel himself blushing now.   
“Have you seen them or not?”   
  
Fjord scratches the side of his jaw. It’s a nervous tick he can’t hide, no matter his disguise.   
  
“They’re over there,” he starts, then reaches out to stop Beau as she start walking in the direction he came from. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. They’re, ah…”   
“Just spit it out already!”   
“Busy.”   
  
Beau’s eyebrows shoots so far up they’re almost lost in her hair.   
  
Then she bursts out laughing.   
“Finally! Man, I thought it’d never happen you know? I’ve been trying to get Caleb to realise for  _ months _ !”   
“Like  _ he’s _ been tryin’ to make you realize Yasha likes  _ you _ ?”   
  
Her eyes narrows, grin gone from her face.   
  
“Look, we overheard you earlier today. Didn’t mean to pry or anythin’, just...“   
“Don’t, Oskar. Don’t even go there.”   
  
Beau walks past him, making sure to bump his shoulder with her own as she does.   
  
As Fjord’s about to return to the main tent, something catches his attention out of the corner of his eye.    
He walks towards it, carefully, ready to summon his falchion again at the first sign of danger.    
  
There forest is not far off, and as he walks closer he can hear the rustling of bushes, the snapping of twigs. Whoever or whatever it is, they’re not aiming to be stealthy.    
_ Probably just an animal _ , he thinks, though he doesn’t turn his back on it, just in case.    
Closer now, he can see slight movement between the trees, something larger than him but not humanoid in shape.   
  
A sudden sneeze catches him off-guard, and when he opens his eyes again, he sees the horse they’d encountered after leaving the tower.   
  
“Now, where’d you come from?” he asks it, knowing not to expect an answer. “Did you follow us all this way?”   
  
It nods as if understanding his words. As if answering his question.   
  
The whole scene distracts him enough that he doesn’t hear someone else approaching until he sees the horse in front of him react to sound and movement.   
  
His falchion is in his hand a split second later, as he spins around and blocks the incoming attack from what appears to be a darkly dressed humanoid. It’s just in time, as a heavy weapon meant to incapacitate and crush bones would have knocked him unconscious had he been but a second late, or not warned by the strange horse that makes him sneeze.   
  
Fjord sneezes again, and this time his attacker hit him.   
  
He goes down, his falchion hitting the ground next to him, just out of reach and just before he blacks out, he sees what he first had thought to be one person shift and become two, smaller ones.    
  
Two creatures he recognises from a few days ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been wanting to write that Kingdom Dance scene ever since this fic was just a mere idea, so I hope I did it justice!


	9. Which Brings Revelations

Jester flies, literally and figuratively.   
  
It’s different from the tower, because now there are others here, watching her. She feels elated, excited, adrenaline surging through her as she uses her hair to fling herself about, drawing gasps from the crowd and her new friends from the circus.  
  
She lands on her feet, one arm out to the side, the other on the ground so steady herself, as her hair falls to the ground behind her.  
  
The crowd applauds and she feels a surge of pride at having done so well, at feeling like she truly belongs with these people. Jester had been worried she’d disappoint Gustav, but she looks over at him and finds him smiling his approval.  
  
What she doesn’t see, however, is Oskar.   
  
As Jester retreats, looking everywhere for him, she spots a blushing Caleb moving his hands to shift his glowing orbs around to light the stage for Gustav, and Molly standing next to him looking really pleased.  
  
“Have you guys seen Oskar? He said he was gonna be here but I don’t see him anywhere.” It’s impossible to keep the worry and disappointment from colouring her voice, a telltale sign of her feelings on the matter.  
“Beau saw him outside just before the show started,” Molly tells her. “But now that you mention it, I don’t think he came inside?”  
  
Molly’s brow furrows then, as he too looks about and sees no sign of him either.  
  
“I’m sure he is fine though. He’s got that fancy sword of his right? And besides, no one would be able to sneak up on him in this camp.”  
“I suppose you’re right Molly,” Jester says, and she knows she sounds nothing like herself at the moment. “But I’ll go look for him.”  
“Ask Beau or Yasha to go with you. Just in case,” Molly tells her as he squeezes her arm in reassurance.   
  
So she goes to look for Beau and Yasha, finding them hidden away in a darkened space in the tent.   
  
Just as Jester’s about to call out to them, she sees Beau holding out the flowers she’d bought earlier, with the help of Caleb.   
Jester’s too far away to hear what they’re saying, and because she doesn’t want to intrude, she slinks into the shadows herself, just as Yasha accepts the flowers.  
  
And, thanks to her ability to see in the dark, Jester can visibly see the colour spreading across Yasha’s cheeks as she mumbles something.  
  
Beau looks even more awkward than she usually does when she’s around Yasha, and Jester finds it adorable. She _knew_ she was right, about them and about Molly and Caleb. And based on the fact that Yasha reaches out to cup Beau’s cheek and the way Beau’s gaze flickers to Yasha’s lips, Jester knows it’s time for her to leave.  
  
So she hurries out of the tent, runs over to her things in order to grab her brand new sickle.  
  
As she reaches into her haversack to grab it, her hand brushes against something that wasn’t there before. She grabs hold of it and on taking it out, Jester finds it’s the horn ornament she had seen in the jewelry shop earlier. Her brow furrows as she briefly wonders how it got there, and she puts it in her pocket.  
  
Then she straightens, sickle in hand.  
  
Resolve flows through her, settling over her like a second skin, straightens her spine until it’s as straight as one of Caleb’s many books, her tail coiled like a snake and ready to strike. Her mind works fast, going over all the spells she knows that can help her if Oskar is in trouble, planning for an unknown situation.  
  
“Do you know where he is?” Jester asks the night air.  
  
 _Something_ washes over her, tugs on the sleeve of her dress. There is nothing corporeal, and it seems more like the wind is playing with it than anything else. But she is inside, and there is no other movement.  
  
Like words on the wind, something guides her towards the cluster of trees bordering their camp.   
  
There is no sound to the words, but she can still hear the voice of the Traveler as he tugs on her mind. _Here. This way. You must hurry._   
And so she follows, resolve coating her in steel and she almost snarls in anger, because she knows, now, that Oskar is in danger.  
  
At least Nott is safe, inside the tent with Molly and Caleb. _She_ , at least, will be fine, no matter what happens out here tonight.   
  
Jester follows the soundless words, follows the tugs until she reaches a clearing in the forest.  
In front of her liess Oskar, back towards her, and across from him are two young women, halflings by what Jester can see in the pale, barely there light of the sickle moon.   
  
The women seem to be speaking, although Jester’s too far away to hear anything, just like with Beau and Yasha before.   
  
Before Jester can do or say anything, she hears the sound of branches breaking, and watches as they run off at the sound.   
Turning towards the sound, sickle in her hand, ready to cast spells, Jester sees the horse she’s encountered just after leaving the tower.  
  
She drops her sickle to the ground in relief, and she runs into the clearing as soon as the halflings have disappeared beyond the trees.  
  
Jester curses herself for not having reacted sooner, for freezing at the sight of Oskar on the ground. Adrenaline surges through her as she slides to her knees next to him, tearing and staining her dress but having no care in the world for it.  
  
“Oskar? Are you okay? Oskar!”   
  
There’s no reply, but she sees he’s still breathing and Jester almost collapses on top of him from the sheer relief.   
  
_I have to get him away from here. Take him back to camp._  
  
She grabs him, throws him over her shoulder, but finds she doesn’t know the way back to the tents, to people, to safety.  
The horse nudges her, blowing out warm air through its nostrils and lifts its head in the direction she’s turned, as though pointing the way.  
  
“Do you know the way back?” she asks it, not expecting an answer.   
  
But it starts walking in that very direction, and so Jester follows it, one hand on its back to comfort herself and for support. It doesn’t even occur to her to put Oskar on its back, not only because she’s strong enough to carry him, but because she needs to feel him, warm and alive and breathing.  
  
They break through the treeline again as the crowd filters out of the main tent.  
  
Caleb, Molly, Beau and Yasha come running as they see them emerge, Nott clinging to Caleb’s hair.   
Yasha moves to help her, but Jester takes a step back, wary of everyone at this point.  
  
“You can take our tent,” Yasha offers instead, pointing towards the one she shares with Molly, and the lavendel tiefling nods in agreement. Not that Jester would have waited for it anyway, but it’s nice nonetheless.   
  
Molly holds the flap open as Jester steps inside, carefully lowering Oskar onto one of the bedrolls.  
  
“Do you need anything?” Caleb asks as he hands her Nott, sounding worried. “Whatever you need, just tell us and...”  
“Thank you, Caleb. I...” Jester pauses to breathe, to focus on calming down, her mind failing at coming up with something to do. “Some light would probably be nice, probably.”  
  
Jester tries her best to sound like her normal, cheery self, and she cringes when it comes out false, comes out forced, but no one comments on it, and a second later the tent is filled with a warm glow from Caleb’s floating lights.   
  
“Could you… could you stay outside? Just in case?”  
  
Caleb nods, gives her a strained smile and closes the flap behind him. She hears them all move a few steps away, staying out of earshot, probably keeping an eye on things out there.   
It makes her feel a lot safer, now that she has time to breathe and think, and she realizes just how terrified she had been.  
  
Jester has _never_ been scared before and she vows to herself to never freeze again.   
  
“Jester?” Oskar’s voice sounds weak and distant, but he’s alive, he’s waking up, and for a moment Jester forgets he’s hurt, and she throws her arms around him, holding him close, feeling his breath next to her ear.  
  
“What happened? Are you okay? Who were those two girls? Why were you alone?”  
“Jes… Calm down...”  
“I’m not going to ‘ _calm down’_ Oskar! You’re hurt!” She says, and points to the scrapes and bruises across his face and arms, some of which are bleeding and have leaves and dirt stuck in them.   
  
It looks like he was dragged across the forest floor, which he probably was.  
  
“Oh,” Oskar says, as though he’s not yet realized it. He looks down at his arms, brows furrowed as he does.   
For a while, they sit there in silence.  
  
Then Oskar speaks up.  
  
“I’ve got somethin’ to tell you, Jes.” He sounds so serious that Jester’s heart stops for a moment, before beating too fast and too loud, galloping in her chest.  
“Okay. What is it?” Her cheer sounds just as false as before.   
“My name’s not Oskar. It’s Fjord. I was runnin’ away from guards when I found your tower, and I saw that you had that book lyin’ around and I’ve heard of it. So I thought, what’s the harm? And I gave you a fake name, cause I didn’ know if I could trust you. I mean, you knocked me out first thing and tied me up. I figured I’d just get away as soon as I could and we’d never see each other again, right? Only...”  
  
Oskar.. no, _Fjord_ , trails off then, looking at the ground instead of at her.  
  
It hurts.  
  
It hurts her a lot, to have been lied to by the first person she ever met except Father. To be lied to by a person she considered to be her friend, her first true friend except Nott and The Traveler.  
  
“It’s why I’ve been keepin’ up the disguises when we’ve been through towns. A tuskless half-orc is easy to remember. I didn’t do anythin’ wrong, I swear. I got caught up in some theft, and now the guards think I was a part of it. I never...”  
“You never _what_ , _Fjord_?”  
  
The name tastes like acid on her tongue, and Jester spits it out in anger.  
  
She expects to feel The Traveler’s anger at this deception, but his presence is instead calming, grounding.  
Jester fights it, feeling betrayed at two fronts now.  
  
“I never thought I’d make friends. Never thought I’d have this. Growing up, I was alone, out on the streets. I didn’t know my parents, never saw anyone like me. ‘s why I don’t have visible tusks; I filed them down to look… normal. Then Vandren, this captain, he, he took me in. Taught me to sail. Was the only parental figure I’ve ever known. One day, there was an explosion. I woke up on the shore, this sword I’d never seen before by my side.   
I was the only survivor.   
Never went back on the water after that. Took up work on the docks. I was alone again, Jes. Until I met you.”  
  
Jester breaks.  
  
She wants to rage, wants to yell, wants to storm out and return to the only comfort she ever had, the only world she ever knew. She wants to forget all of this ever happened, pretend it was all a dream that will fade when she wakes up.  
  
Instead she cries.  
  
She throws her arms around him instead, crying for what they have both lost, for the parents they never got to know, for the injustice of the world.   
  
Once her tears have dried out, and her breathing’s back to normal, she pulls back to look at Fjord, to look at the scrapes and bruises and makes a decision.  
  
“I have something to tell you too. Father says I have magical hair that heals. That is why he kept me locked up, because someone tried to use it, wanted to sell it and so they cut some of it away. It changed colour and lost its power once cut, and he didn’t want me to get hurt.”  
  
Jester looks at Fjord, expecting to see anything but acceptance on his face.   
  
“Here, let me show you!” she says, taking one of his arms and wrapping it all up in her hair. “Please don’t freak out though, please?”  
  
Fjord nods at her, and she begins to sing.   
  
It’s harsh and crude, Infernal not being made for singing, but it’s the version taught to her by The Traveler and so she prefers it over the version of common that her father taught her.   
That, and there’s something about singing a song of healing in a language that terrifies almost everyone who hears it, that makes Jester do it from the sheer irony.   
  
As she sings, her hair glows a cold blue, and the light from it mingles with the warm orange of Caleb’s orbs.   
  
The bruises fade, the cuts and scrape closing up and in mere seconds the only signs of what had happened are the specks of dirt on Fjord’s skin and clothes, and the dried leaves in his hair.  
  
“Thank you, Jester,” Fjord says as he looks into her eyes, and Jester fights back the tears that are once again threatening to spill over. She’s cried enough tears for one day.  
“You’re welcome Fjord. Just don’t do that again, because I am not used to healing people and I don’t want anyone to be stupid and die because they think I can help before it’s too late, okay?”  
“I promise,” Fjord says, and in that moment Jester believes him, believes that everything will be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I panicked a bit cause I discovered that I had not yet written the part where Fjord reveals his real name and Jester reveals she has "magic hair" but then it worked itself out and it turned out better than what I had planned for this chapter so it's all okay!


	10. Which Contains Suspiscions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit shorter this time; sorry for that

Fjord had been attacked, dragged through the forest, almost taken away.   
But Jester had saved him. Jester had brought him back.   
  
Jester deserves the truth.   
  
As he speaks, Fjord fears she’ll leave, more and more with each word that tumbles out of his mouth. She looks hurt, betrayed, but she stays. She cries as she holds him and then she heals him.   
  
Fjord wishes he could tell her why Mona and Yuli had attacked him, but he can’t because he doesn't know either .    
  
“Why’d you think they did it?” he asks Molly. “They’re part of your group right? Didn’t you say you all work together and trust one another, and that that’s why it works out?”   
“I don’t know,” Molly replies, looking confused and worried and angry all at the same time. “But I don’t think we should tell anyone about this, especially not Gustav.”   
  
Fjord nods.   
  
“I think you’re right. Somethin’s definitely not right. You’ve never had a problem with them, or anyone else, before right? So why now?”   
“I’ve only been with them for two years, but not that I’m aware of. But,” Molly looks over at Jester for a moment, seated on the ground and fiddling with something shiny in her hands, then back at him. “I think it’s got something to do with the pair of you.”   
  
He furrows his brows at Molly.   
  
“What makes you say that?”   
“I’ll tell you later. We need to pack up so we can get an early start. Port Damali’s only two days travel away.”   
“I’ll hold you to that,” Fjord replies, then gets up to help.   
  
As they’re about to go to sleep, Molly stops him one last time.   
  
“So… What’s the deal with the horse?” he asks, pointing towards the newcomer where it stands next to the rest of the horses.   
“What’s the deal with the new jewelry?” Fjord asks in return, eyebrow raised at the silver and amethyst piece at the tip of Molly’s tail, catching the dying embers of the bonfire.   
“Fjord…” Molly tries to sound threatening, but Fjord just scoffs, because he can see the lavender skin turn a deeper purple.   
“Aight,” he says, holding his hands up in a placating manner. “Beau was right ‘s all I’m sayin’. But you mean, why does it make me all puffy? No damned clue, but somethin’ aint right about it. I’m only like this around cats. Dunno how I managed it aboard the ships now that I think about it...”   
  
Molly walks away, and this time it’s Fjord who stops him.   
  
“Hey, Molly? I’m happy for ya.”   
  
\---   
  
They start before the sun shows its presence.    
  
As they had bought plenty baked goods and cheeses the previous day, they decide to eat on the road instead of spending time cooking and heating up food, saving it for later in the day instead.   
  
Jester is unnaturally quiet, fiddling with something the entire time, only taking breaks to draw in her book.    
  
She doesn’t even notice the landscape changing around them, doesn’t notice the faint cries of gulls nor the scent of the ocean carried on the wind. But despite this, Fjord feels himself relax, for the sounds and scents will always mean home to him. It’s only been a few days, but he’s missed this, missed the comfort of the sounds and scents and sights.    
  
There’s something incredibly comforting about it all.   
  
Things feel different now. A lot happened over the past 24 hours, and it’s clear to see.    
Caleb sits next to Molly at the bench of one of the carts, and despite having an ever-present book in his hands, Caleb’s focus is not on the book, but rather on the tiefling next to him. More than once, Fjord catches Caleb’s eyes go to the newest ornament on Molly and the small smile that makes him look younger and more carefree.   
  
At the back of the procession, Beau rides next to Yasha.   
  
That in and of itself is not unusual, but normally there are a few feet between them. Now though, now they’re riding so close together there’s a wonder neither ends up crushed between the flanks of the horses.    
But it seems they don’t care about that, as it means they get to hold hands.   
  
\---   
  
They make camp by a small forest just outside the city.    
  
The trees hide the city from view, but the sea is visible, and Fjord spends the night looking at the comforting sight. He sits with his back against the rest of the camp, eyes closed, enjoying the salty ocean breeze, focusing on the sound of waves lapping against the rocky shore.   
  
Behind him, Fjord hears the preparations being made for the evening meal and the usual campsite chatter he’s grown used to.   
  
But there’s one voice missing, and the dissonance is grating.    
  
Fjord rises from his perch on the stump of a fallen tree, turning towards where he last saw Jester. She’s still sitting there, jewelry in hand, legs crossed with Nott perched on one of her knees.    
  
“Jes, you okay?”   
“Yeah. I’m fine,” she replies, but it’s a clear lie.   
“You’re just awfully quiet, ‘s all. Did you eat anythin’ at all today?”   
“I said I’m  _ fine _ , Fjord.” There’s heat in her voice this time, enough to make him recoil slightly. But he doesn’t pull away.   
  
He nods, even though she can’t see it.   
  
“Alright. Just… please come eat some when the food’s ready. It’ll be easier to get a good night’s rest that way.”   
“Okay Fjord.”   
  
To his surprise, Jester does show up when dinner is served, and she’s not holding on to the jewelry for once.   
She even seems more herself, though Fjord can see it takes effort on her part to act like everything’s fine. It seems most of the others are fooled, but not all of them. He can feel Caleb staring in their direction, though the wizard turns away when Fjord looks at him.   
  
After dinner is eaten and the dishes have been put away, Fjord approaches Molly.   
  
“I’ll ask you again, Molly, because you said you’d tell me later. This is later.”   
“Well… You were asked to help them get inside the castle in Nicodranas, right? And then they came back to get you. Look at her. Don’t you think there’s something familiar about her? Something that made her  _ dad _ lock her up.” He puts pressure on the word  _ dad _ , and Fjord doesn’t like the implications of it.   
“I didn’t see the man, but I heard him, and he ain’t a nice person.”   
“I’m not surprised. You see the shiny jewelry in her hands? Caleb says she saw it in the jewelry store and reacted as if she’s seen it before. Only she claims she’s never seen it until now. The owner can’t say where it came from or why and how she ended up with it.”   
  
It’s hard to see it properly from this distance, but Fjord manages to catch the look on Jester’s face as she once again fiddles with the jewelry, inspects it, and she looks confused. She’s been doing it nonstop ever since they left town two days ago.   
  
It worries him.   
  
“I looked at it earlier, while you were eating, and Nott tried to stop me. She even bit me,” Molly says, and hold his hand up. Fjord sees the sharp marks on one of his fingers, too sharp to belong to creature of that type. “but I managed to snatch it. Now, I know my jewelry, as I’m pretty sure you can see, and that’s some fancy, expensive stuff. That’s a special order. And the ruby? That’s the symbol of the Ruby of the Sea.”   
  
Fjord recoils in surprise.   
  
“The Queen? The ruler of the Coast? You’re sure?”   
“There might not be many paintings of the Ruby, but her symbol can be found everywhere. So yes, I’m sure.”   
  
Surely, it can’t be true? Fjord’s heard of the Ruby of the Sea, heard whispers about her but he’s never seen any imagery of her.    
  
“Fjord…” Molly sounds completely serious, and it’s unnerving to have those oh so very red eyes focused on him. “I might be wrong but...“    
“Please, Molly, don’t. Just… don’t say it. Not yet.”  _ Not until I’m ready to believe it _ , he adds silently.   
  
Molly nods in understanding.   
  
“Just think about it, okay? We’ll head into town tomorrow, some of us, leave the rest to set up camp. Maybe it’ll cheer Jester up.”   
“Yeah, maybe. She was the one who wanted to come here after all.”   
  
\---   
  
Fjord has a restless night.   
  
He dreams of a ruby transforming into a person, but he can’t see who they are or what they look like. He dreams of Jester leaving. He dreams of being alone again. He dreams of a large, yellow eye staring at him from the depths.   
  
Fjord wakes to find Jester asleep beside him, and can’t stop himself from reaching out to brush her hair away from her face, because he needs to know she’s real, that she’s still next to him.   
  
His hand goes straight through and hits solid wood.   
  
\---   
  
“Fjord!”  The sound of his name called out makes him turn around, facing the sound, falchion in his hand, dripping seawater. “It’s okay Fjord, it’s me. It’s Jester.”    
  
Her voice reaches him, and Fjord looks around. He’s in the ocean, submerged in water up to his chest. When did he...? The wind is harsh, the waves almost draggin him under but he stands as firm as he can, instinctively shifting one foot to steady himself.    
  
Jester stands on shore, her white night gown soaked, impossibly long hair whipping out behind her like one of the circus banners.   
She looks like the figurehead of a ship, or the avenging spirit of the spouse of someone drowned at sea. Like a siren come to lure him away.   
  
She looks  _ beautiful _ .   
  
Fjord suddenly realises she’s holding out her hand, beckoning him to come back to shore, and she does, because this is Jester, this is his friend, this is the woman… No, he can’t think like that, not after his conversation with Molly.    
  
It’s not until his feet are firmly planted on the ground that Fjord realises how cold he is.   
  
Shivering openly, he struggled to climb up the slope back to camp, back to warmth, but Jester helps him along, and the warmth of her hands seeps through his clothes and steadies him.    
  
When they reach their cart, Jester starts helping him undress.   
  
“Uh, Jes, I don’t…”   
“Oh, shut up Fjord. I’m a cleric, and letting you get sick from this would just be stupid. Don’t worry, I’m not trying to have sex with you or anything.” He can  _ hear _ her rolling her eyes.   
“I wasn’t…”   
“I know. I’m just teasing you.” She laughs, and the sound warms him.   
  
Once he is down to his undergarments, Jester pushed him into the cart and crawls in after him.    
  
As soon as he lies down on top of his bedroll (still warm from before), she curls up against his side and he feels instantly warmer (he tries to focus his gaze on her face, as the material of her dress hides absolutely nothing).   
  
Fjord closes his eyes, tries to will his blush away, not used to this sort of intimacy.    
  
Because, while Jester claims it’s because she’s a cleric and doesn’t want him to get sick, a part of Fjord can’t help but suspect she wouldn’t do this for just anyone. It makes him feel special, it makes him feel scared. Based on previous experiences, growing close to someone means losing them, and Fjord knows he could never handle losing Jester.   
  
The mere  _ thought _ of it leaves him with the taste of bile on his tongue.   
  
So he shifts his focus back to the here and now, pulls Jester in closer, tucks her head in under his chin in an attempt to shield her, protect her.   
  
Jester’s hair smells like lavender and saltwater and Fjord commits it to memory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Watch me write this in a day as a way to beat my depression to the ground


	11. Which Takes Place in Port Damali

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was thinking that this would be the 2nd to last chapter but then it grew and I didn't want ot risk it being easily twice as long as the others, so instead the goal now is that this work will be 14 chapters long

She had been really worried the night before, when she had woken up and found Fjord missing.   
  
Finding him standing in the ocean, doing something she couldn’t see, and clearly not in control of himself had terrified her, and Jester thanks the Traveler Fjord heard her calling out to him, and that he took the hand and help she had offered him.   
  
She’d made sure to curl up against him so she’d know he left again.   
  
\---   
  
The following morning they’re still tangled together, her hair covering the both of them like a blanket, and Nott nested up in it on top of Jester, because for some reason, Nott doesn’t seem to care for Fjord very much.   
  
Jester hopes it will change.   
  
Last night’s worry creeps in again, and it distracts her from staring at the horn ornament that is familiar but by all accounts should not be; she’s sure she would have remembered it if it had been pictured in one of the countless books she’s read.   
  
Besides, upon inspecting it, she’s found it’s not yet been used.   
  
There are no scrapes or marks of any kind on the inside where it would have scraped against a horn. It seems odd that such a piece, one that looks as expensive as this one  - at least based on what Molly says - should not have been used, and ended up being sold to a jeweler in a smaller town.   
  
Especially as said jeweler couldn’t remember how it had ended up in her store.   
  
Jester still doesn’t know how it ended up in her bag, and if she’s to be completely honest with herself, it worries her.   
It had only been her, Nott and Caleb in the store, and she had not mentioned it to anyone and as far as she knows, neither had Caleb. Nor does she think Nyx-Orla noticed her odd reaction to it.   
  
So who could have done it?    
  
Who could possibly have stolen the piece from a locked glass case and placed it in her bright pink haversack without anyone noticing?   
At least they’re away from the town, so they won’t have the guards sent after them. Or so she hopes.   
  
Jester’s thoughts are broken by Fjord waking up.   
  
He’s in her arms, unlike when they had fallen asleep and she had been in his, and Jester would laugh at the surreal implications of it if she weren’t so worried.    
Fjord’s eyes slowly blinks open and he moves his head to look at her, a small, soft smile tugging at his lips.   
  
“Good mornin’,” he says, stifling a yawn.   
“Good morning Fjord,” she replies, putting cheer she doesn’t feel into her voice, hoping it’ll fool him, at least for now.   
  
Either he’s fooled, or decides not to say anything, because he carefully extracts himself from her hands and her hair, and sits up in order to stretch and rub at his eyes.    
  
“Finally headin’ into Port Damali today. You excited?”   
“Oh yes, I’m very excited Fjord! Is it big? Ooooh, do they have a lot of sweets and baked goods there?” This time the cheer isn’t faked, and Jester’s tail swishes about.   
“Now, I haven’t been there in a while, but from what I remember and have heard, then it’s second only to Nicodranas.”   
“That’s your home, right?”   
“That’s where I’ve lived for quite a few years now, yeah” Fjord replies, and Jester worries that he didn’t use the word  _ home _ .   
  
The rest of the camp have clearly been awake for some time already.   
  
Jester’s thoughts are stopped before they can really begin as Caleb walks up to their cart and knocks on the side and waits for permission to pull the covering aside. They know it’s Caleb before they see him, as he is the only to knock and wait, instead of barging in.   
  
Seems Caleb’s the only one to have heard of privacy.   
  
“Come in Caleb!” she shouts, knowing well she could just speak in a normal tone.   
“I am here to say that breakfast is ready, and that Mollymauk,” he pauses very briefly, and Jester catches the way Caleb says Molly’s name differently now, “and I will come with you into town afterwards.”   
“Lookin’ for books again Caleb?” Fjord asks, a grin on his face that lets Jester know he is  _ really _ asking another question entirely.   
“ _ Ja _ . I am always looking for more books?” Caleb’s voice and head tilts at the end, turning the reply into a question.   
  
Caleb, it seems, does not catch the double meaning in Fjord’s questions.    
  
Jester thinks it’s probably for the best, because Caleb is someone who prefers to not have attention directed at him, and this thing between him and Molly is still new and fragile and Jester thinks they’re very cute together.    
Despite being curious, she’d rather have them be comfortable in peace.   
  
“Thank you Caleeeeb! We’ll join you soon, okay?”   
“Ja, okay.”   
  
As soon as Caleb is out of earshot, Jester turns towards Fjord again.   
  
“Are you okay Fjord? You really scared me last night you know! I woke up and you were gone and then you didn’t answer when I called and then I found you and you were in the water and so far away and I could barely see you and…”   
“Shhh, Jes, it’s okay. I’m here, I promise. I’m not goin’ anywhere.”   
  
Fjord reaches out and holds her tight, and only then does Jester realize she’s crying.   
  
He continues to hold her, moves her onto his lap as she cries, out of worry and fear and pent up emotions. For one, terrifying moment when she first woke up, she had feared it had all been a dream, that she was back in the tower and that she had never left in the first place.   
  
“I thought you’d left me,” she whispers against the hollow of his throat. “I thought I was going to be alone again.”    
  
Her lips are a mere inch from Fjord’s skin, and it would be so very easy to place a kiss there, to feel the skin, to taste the saltwater from the night before.    
But she fears she’ll break the trust between them if she does, and their friendship is more important than anything else.    
  
Besides, Jester doesn’t know what this feeling is.   
  
She just knows that when Fjord looks at her, and especially when their eyes meet, she gets a funny feeling inside and it makes her heart skip a beat. Jester tries to act normal, and she’s good at it, for the most part. But this is all so new and unfamiliar, so it’s better to pretend nothing’s changed.   
  
“I think we should probably go eat, probably,” she says as she pulls away, a smile she doesn’t quite feel on her lips.    
“Yeah,” Fjord replies, and Jester can’t put a name to the sound of his voice.   
  
\---   
  
The town is  _ huge _ .    
  
Jester finds it’s the only words that comes even close to describing Port Damali, and yet she’s only just set foot inside the South Gate. The city is vibrant, with houses painted in various shades of greens near the gate they just entered.   
  
She can hear the gulls overhead and to the west.   
  
Looking at Fjord, she sees the wistful look in his eyes, and so she takes his hand and starts walking quickly in that direction, relying on the scent of saltwater and fish to guide her to the right place. She barely hears Molly shout after them, as he and Caleb have other things to attend to.   
  
“Meet us at the main square in three hours!”   
  
Jester just waves her hand in confirmation, then tugs Fjord’s hand to make him walk faster. She’s walking with such determination that the people headed in the opposite direction quickly scamper out of their way.   
  
The closer they get to the portside, the more the buildings change.   
  
They turn from green to blue in colour, from smooth stone to exposed brick and wood, growing smaller and closer to the streets. The stones beneath their feet turn duller, covered in dirt and mud and soon there’s no sign of there ever having been stone there to begin with.   
  
Jester tugs Fjord around a corner, and the sea is there in front of them.   
  
It’s vast and so very blue and the stench of fish mingles with the salt of the sea and the screams of gulls above.    
The port itself is mostly round, protected on all but one side by walls.   
Down here, there are no houses, just buildings for storage and cranes for unloading goods to heavy to be carried.    
  
“The walls keeps the port protected from the worst winds and waves,” Fjord explains. “Makes the port easier to defend as well.”   
  
There are covered stalls selling produce of the sea, caught fresh that very morning.   
  
Looking around, Jester sees a lot of people milling about, and most seem to be dockworkers or sailors taking a break from their ships. Some oversee the moving cargo, others buys goods that will last at sea, while others yet head into one of the many small pubs and inns around that caters to people like them.   
  
Cats prowls the area, looking for scraps of fish.   
  
Jester can spot some fancier dressed people, astride horses to spare themselves from the muck and grime, and they look down upon the workers in a way that indicates they think that the workers are below them in more ways than one.    
  
Sure, getting muck on your boots is annoying, but riding a horse at the docks to avoid it?   
  
“Do they do that to leave more dirt behind on purpose? Or do they really care more about their boots than other people?” Jester asks Fjord, looking at one such person astride a beautiful black mare.    
“I don’t rightly know,” Fjord replies, sounding a bit winded from their walk.    
“Maybe they’re just really stupid?” she muses, not expecting an answer.   
  
The man on the black horse turns around then, and bumps into Fjord, barely avoiding riding over his feet.   
  
Jester catches him in time, just before he hits the ground and she’s seething. The man is clearly a prick who doesn’t care for anyone but himself, and he’d just treated Fjord like all the dockworkers here. None of them deserves to be treated this way, and Fjord least of all.   
Fjord, who saved her from her tower. Fjord, her first corporeal friend. Fjord, who calls her Jes.   
  
“Hey you bag of dicks! That was not very nice of you, you know! You should definitely come back here and apologize to Fjord, definitely,” she shouts after him, not caring that she makes a scene.   
“Jes, you really don’t…”   
“I know you can hear me!” she shouts again as she helps Fjord stand up again.   
  
The man on the horse barely makes any indication as to having heard her and rides on.   
  
“I’m gonna...” she starts, and tries to run after the man, but Fjord’s arms are around her waist. They both know Jester’s the strongest of them by far, and had she wanted to, she could easily have broken the hold, but even in her angry haze she understands why he holds her back and besides…   
  
Besides, it feels nice to be held.   
  
Even if she’d much rather smack that shitty guy with her lollipop so he’d fall off of his horse and get mud on his shitty expensive boots, just  _ once _ .    
Or maybe ask Nott to bite him; which she guesses is a request Nott would never deny. In fact, Jester worries Nott likes it  _ too _ much.   
  
“Come on Jes, let’s go find you some bear claws,” Fjord says.   
“Bear claws? What’s that?” Interest piqued, Jester turns her back on the rude man, but she memorizes his face, just in case.   
“You’re gonna love ‘em,” Fjord says, but doesn’t let on anything more.   
  
This time,  _ he _ is the one to take  _ her _ hand.   
  
Fjord leads her through the labyrinthine streets, towards roads that leads higher into the city. The further they get from the docks, the more the buildings change. They turn from faded blues to vibrant reds and yellows and oranges, grow taller and more sprawling, set further back from the paved roads and surrounded by gardens.    
  
The roads change colour too; stones turning from dull greys to warm reds and browns, with some black ones.   
  
They pass by narrow streets, squares of various sizes and shapes, some with fountains, others with wells. There are cafés and inns with shaded porches covered by pergolas supported by marble columns, barely visible behind vines in greens and deep reds.    
One of them is called The Tiefling’s Teahouse, and Jester commits it to memory so she can show it to Molly later, because they name is simply too perfect.   
  
In the end, Fjord leads her to a smaller square.   
  
Shaded from most of the sun, the temperature is more comfortable here, and more private. The smell of baked goods is heavenly as they approach and occupy the last available table outside of the bakery, and Jester notices the name of it.   
  
“The Rakshasa’s Respite?” she asks, curious as to just what a  _ rakshasa _ is.   
“Apparently, back when the city had just been built, a rakshasa took up residence here,” Fjord starts in a whisper, leaning in. “Had a love for baked goods if the legends are true. Bought the place and had his servants and slaves work all day round to create new pastries and pies, amongst other things.”   
“That doesn’t sound very nice,” Jester remarks. “But Fjord?   
“Yeah Jes?”   
“ _ What is a rakshasa _ ?”   
“Oh, right.” Fjord looks a bit embarrassed. “They’re fiends who can take any humanoid forms. But their true form is that of a powerfully built humanoid with the head of an animal. And their hands are backwards; palms facing out. They’re greedy bastards and powerful sorcerers.”   
  
A shudder runs through Jester at that, and the air around her feels colder for a moment.   
  
“Wait here,” Fjord says. “I’ll be right back with somethin’ for you to try.”   
“Okay Fjord.”   
  
Fjord returns minutes later, carrying a tray with pastries to fresh they’re steaming, and two glasses of milk.   
The smell is heavenly and Jester’s salivating.   
As soon as the tray hits the table, Jester tears off a piece, not even bothering to blow at it to cool it down, then puts it in her mouth.   
  
It’s hot, but she ignores it and focuses on the flavour.    
  
The taste of almonds hits her first, then the raisins. Then the cinnamon takes over.    
It’s sweet, just the way she likes it, and she tears into another piece before Fjord’s even sat down.   
  
A moan escapes her, and she doesn’t even try to suppress it.   
  
“Gods!” Jester exclaims. “This is like the best thing ever! Fjord, you have to try it!”   
“I’m glad you like it Jes.”   
“Like it?!” She may have said that too loudly, but she doesn’t really care. “I love it so much I wish I could eat nothing else the rest of my life! Can we buy some more and bring with us?”   
“I don’t see why not,” Fjord says and smiles at her, before taking a piece of his own bear claw.   
  
Fjord’s face mimics Jester’s own pure bliss at the taste, and...   
  
Aand as much as she would like to claim the way her heart leaps around funnily in her chest and her stomach feels strange is because she barely had anything for breakfast and just stuffed two bear claws down her throat in no time at all, Jester knows it’s Fjord who makes her feel like this.


	12. In Which They Go on a Date

Fjord swallows his uneasiness.  
  
He tries to ignore it as best he can, but being back in Port Damali isn’t easy; especially being back in the port district.   
Fjord had grown up here, in the slums by the docks, abandoned or forgotten, or maybe his parents were both dead, or his biological dad never knew about him and his mom left or died. No matter the reason, Fjord doesn’t know, will never know, and it’s impossible to change the past.   
  
And no matter what did or did not happen, the result had still been the same.   
  
Fjord had grown up alone on the streets, unwelcome and unwanted by all. He had been _too different_ , and not matter what he’d done to fit in, it never worked.   
It had been a hard lesson; one he’ll never forget, and one he wouldn’t wish on the worst of his enemies.   
  
So yeah, being back is difficult.   
  
When the lord or whatever-the-fuck he is almost tramples him, Fjord doesn’t feel anger. He got used to it early on, that that’s what life is like in Port Damali for dock workers; especially when you’re _half monster_ .   
  
Fjord tries not to think about the insults that had been hurled at him, but being back makes the memories resurface.   
  
He shifts his focus to Jester instead, to making her happy and showing her around town.   
The Rakshasa’s Respite is one of the places he remembers most from his childhood and later years. When he started working, he’d sometimes taken deliveries to this bakery and each time the scent of freshly baked goods had enticed him.   
  
But Fjord could never afford to buy any. Not that a filthy dock worker would have been welcomed to eat there anyway.   
  
Now though, now he can. He has money, he feels more comfortable in his skin, in his abilities. Fjord is better at talking, at persuading now, and it takes a minimal amount of applied practice to look like he belongs in a place like this, that they should be glad he chose to come to _their_ place to purchase _their_ goods.   
  
And it helps that he’s borrowed an outfit from the circus so he’s not dressed in his usual travel clothes.   
  
Fjord thinks it’s all worth it, now, everything that’s lead up to this, because hardened by the world as he might be, it’s all lead him to this moment right here, sitting across Jester as she experiences a new pastry, in a new town.   
He promised nothing more than to bring her here, and now that he feels the end of it all approach, he wants nothing more than to make it last forever.   
  
_I’m in love with her_ , Fjord thinks.   
  
It _should_ be terrifying, to fall in love with someone is such short a time, but it’s not. It’s incredible and wonderful and a bit scary, but only because he doesn’t know what will happen after. Fjord can cope with being rejected, can handle being nothing more than her friend.   
  
What _does_ terrify him though, is the thought he might never see her again after this.   
  
So Fjord makes a promise to himself that he’ll make sure Jester has the best day of her life, no matter what happens after this. Because Fjord cares enough about her to do whatever it takes to make sure this will be a day to remember.   
  
At last Fjord takes a bite of the pastry he spent so many years wanting.   
  
He knows they sell them in Nicodranas too, but it was never about the pastry as much as the place itself, so he never went to buy any in the town that is technically his home.   
So when the fresh pastry hits his tongue, too warm for him as he’d made sure to request some fresh out of the oven, he doesn’t even consider spitting it out or cooling it with the milk.   
  
Because it’s worth the wait.   
  
Not the taste itself, not really, though the combination of spices and almonds and pastry dough is really good, it’s more about sitting here, sharing his first time with Jester. She doesn’t know how special this moment if for Fjord, doesn’t know how many years he’s been waiting for this, and just how special she makes it all.   
  
It’s special because _Jester_ is special.   
  
“Ready to go see the rest of the city?” Fjord asks her once their plates and glasses are empty for the second time.   
“Are there more pastries we can try in other places?” Jester asks in return, and Fjord can’t help but laugh.   
“Lots of places,” he says. “Not sure I can eat much more myself though.”   
  
Jester jumps up from her seat and reaches her hand out to him to help him stand.   
  
“Then let’s get going! I wanna try as many as I can before we have to return.”   
“Yeah,” Fjord replies, feeling sad until he looks into her eyes. He shoves it away, instead focusing on the moment. _I might not see you again after today, but I’ll make it worth it_ .   
  
  
“Where to?” she asks as they exit the small square they’d been seated it.   
“Depends on what you wanna see,” Fjord replies. “There’s a bathouse, a garden made in honour of the Ruby Queen, a courtyard for craftsmen, a square where the enchanters work and a small hut set in a garden on the outskirts for a herbalist...”   
“Hmmm… we probably don’t have time to see all the places, probably,” Jester says, and Fjord notes how adorably her nose crinkles as she thinks about it.   
  
After a moment she closes her eyes, spins around a few times and points in a direction with her eyes still closed.   
  
“Whichever place is in that direction!” And before Fjord can reply, she grabs his hand and tugs him in her chosen direction.   
“Jes, slow down,” he says, but he can’t help but laugh once more at her energy.   
“Come on Fjord! You gotta live a little!”   
“It’s not that,” he says, louder than normal. “Don’t you wanna know where we’re going?”   
“Where’s the fun in that?” she asks, then turns down another street at random. “Not knowing where you’ll end up is exciting!”   
  
Fjord is so focused on Jester and not falling flat on his face that by the time Jester finally stops, he no longer knows where they are.   
  
“ _The Ruby’s Garden_ ,” Jester reads from the arch across the main entrance to the park. The large wrought-iron gate stands open and the scent of flowers mingle with the salt of the sea. “Have you been here before Fjord?”   
“Nah, never had time for that when I lived here. I was mostly down by the docks, but I made deliveries to most o’ the city so I’ve walked past.”   
  
Jester squeezes his hand and smiles gently at him.   
  
“Ready for a new experience?”   
“Always.” _As long as I’m with you_ .   
  
Hand in hand they walk through the gate that is adorned with tear-shaped glass the colour of rubies.   
  
It’s still early spring, and so most flowers aren’t in bloom yet. But as they walk through the park, they notice it’s all a mixture of flowers that bloom from the earliest day of spring to the last of autumn, so that there will always be blooming flowers everywhere.   
  
There are flowers of all colours and sizes and shapes, mixed with trees and bushes, ponds and creeks and fountains and stacked stones.   
  
Some of the trees and bushes bloom, and there are plants in the water that will bloom as the weather turns warmer and seasons change.   
Between the trees there are benches covered in dappled sunlight, offering rest out of the harsh summer sunlight.   
  
As this is just another weekday there aren’t many people around, which suits them perfectly.   
  
Jester points out various plants and flowers and birds she recognizes from her books, and several times she sits down to sketch and draw and paint what she sees.   
  
“I alway tell The Traveler about my day through my sketchbook,” she explains before Fjord can ask. “And this way I get to practice and I will never forget this place.”   
  
As Jester works on her artistic skill, Fjord watches her.   
  
He looks at her nose again crinkles, as she sticks her tongue out slightly when working on a particularly challenging piece or detail.   
Even though her long hair is once again braided to make it easier to traverse the city, some strands have escaped and move in the gentle breeze.   
Jester’s too focused to notice, and Fjord stops himself several times from reaching out to tuck them behind her ears.   
  
Her jewelry chimes in the breeze, mingling with the birds chirping.   
  
In the end, Fjord closes his eyes and focuses on the sounds and scents and the sun on his face. The flowers and salt from the ocean permeates the air, but the scent that fills his nostrils comes from Jester.   
  
Jester smells like pastries and lavender, of his beloved ocean and Molly’s scented candles and Caleb’s incense.   
  
Jester smells like _home_ .   
  
_Home_ is a word that falls from Fjord’s lips when he talks about Nicodranas, but it has always felt like a lie. Still does. And Port Damali was never _home_ either. Just where he grew up.   
Home is no longer a place. Home is people, home is friends and comrades and people he cares about.   
  
Home is Jester dancing, hair flying out behind her.   
  
Home is Caleb reading by the fire or his dancing lights. Home is Molly juggling with his swords to try to keep his focus away from Caleb for once. Home is Beau and Yasha looking at one another but never at the same time, and somehow never meeting the gaze of the other person.   
  
“Fjord?”   
“Yeah Jes?”   
“You’re not bored are you?” She sounds worried, and he hates that he is made her feel like this.   
“Not at all,” he quickly reassures her. “I was just thinking, ‘s all.”   
“About what?”   
  
She rests her chin on her hands and looks at him expectantly.   
  
“Ah, well…” he scratches the back of his head nervously. Fjord doesn’t want to lie to Jester, but he doesn’t know quite how to say what he is thinking of without sounding weird. “Just ‘bout how great these past few days have been. You were right, you know.”   
“Oh? about what Fjord?”   
“About trusting Molly and Caleb and Beau and Yasha and the others. They’re great people, and I don’t think we would’ve made it here without them.”   
  
Jester beams at him.   
  
“So you’re saying I was right?! Ha! I knew it! I’m really great at reading people you know.” Her grin widens. “Now, take me to the bathhouse!”   
"Oh shit," Fjord says as realisation hit him. "Weren't we supposed to meet Caleb and Molly hours ago?"  
"Don't worry about that," Jester replies." Caleb sent me a message hours ago saying they're _delayed_." She waggles her brows at the last word.  
"Oh... Okay then."  
  
They _walk_ to the bathhouse, at Fjord’s insistence.   
  
“ _The Bearclaw Bathouse_ ?” Jester sounds incredulous as she reads the name of the place out loud.   
“The rakshasa again,” Fjord offers as an explanation.   
“So the fiend liked bear claws enough to name a bathhouse after it? Oooooh, do they serve bear claws here?!”   
“Sense a pattern?” Fjord asks her. “ _Rakshasa’s Respite_ ? _Bearclaw Bathhouse_ ? And I don’t think they serve it here, but I’ve never been so I can’t rightly say.”   
  
Jester grins, and Fjord recognises it means trouble.   
  
“Only one way to find out!” Jester says as she moves towards the large double doors that open on their own as she approaches. As she enters, she turns to wink at him, “If not, I still have some in my bag that we can share.”   
  
Yepp. She’s definitely trouble, and Fjord finds he craves it.   
  
He pays for a private room for them, blushing profusely at the implications of the request and the look the woman behind the counter gives them and Jester stands off to the side, waiting for Fjord to finish.   
They’re guided to their room, and as soon as the door closes behind them, Jester starts to take off her clothes.   
  
Fjord turns his back immediately, blushing even harder.   
  
To be honest, he hadn’t thought this far ahead. He’s only been to a bathhouse once before and not only has it been years since then, but it had been with fellow sailors.   
This though, this is entirely different.   
  
_This doesn’t mean anything_ , he tries to convince himself. But it doesn’t work, of course.   
  
“Hurry up Fjord!” she says, and as he hears her moving away from him, Fjord finally lets out the breath he didn’t know he was holding. “Ooooh, the water is perfect! Come on before it gets cold!”   
  
He strips out of his borrowed clothes, folding them carefully and putting them on a stool in order to buy himself more time.   
  
Not that it works for more than a couple of minutes. Careful as he is with the clothes, he knows he can’t stall any longer. Fjord knows he can keep his smallclothes on, but seeing as Jester’s taken hers off, it would make it strange for him to keep his on. And maybe make Jester wonder if she did the right thing in taking all of hers off. Being locked in a tower means she’s never been to a bathhouse before.   
  
Fjord’s never been one for overthinking, but he is now.   
  
So he takes a deep breath and joins Jester in the tub that could comfortably fit a small group of people.   
He does his best not no look at her as he climbs in, and Jester was right, the temperature is perfect, and Fjord can feel his worries seep out of his bones as the warmth fills and calms him.   
  
He opens his eyes, not realizing he’d closed them in pure bliss.   
  
Jester is looking at him, and it’s the first thing he notices as the steam settles. He doesn’t know what the look means, and then his mind suggests that this must be the first time she’s ever seen anyone naked, and he hurriedly covers himself.   
  
And there’s that blush again.   
  
“It’s okay Fjord, I don’t mind,” Jester says with far more understanding that he expected. “You’re not the first one you know?”   
“The first one what?” He chokes on air, thoroughly confused as to what she’s talking about.   
“You’re not the first man I’ve seen naked,” she clarifies. “I’ve seen pictures in books and also Molly walks around naked A LOT. You haven’t seen him?”   
  
Fjord shakes his head vigorously.   
  
“Nope. Don’t wanna either.”   
“Don’t know how you missed it though… It’s nothing special,” she says, and sounds so indifferent about the whole ordeal. “But seeing Caleb’s reaction is absolutely worth it!” Jester laughs again, and Fjord can barely imagine how red Caleb must get at seeing that.   
“D’you think he does it on purpose?” he asks her.   
“Don’t you?” she replies, and there is that grin again.   
  
It takes every ounce of self control to focus on her face and not let his gaze slip down even an inch.   
  
And Jester notices, because _of course_ she does. So she stretches languidly, tail drawing patterns on the surface of the water, as she makes a sound that should be called obscene.   
  
Fjord thinks she’s spent way too much time with Molly for it to be healthy for anyone.   
  
But would he make a move if he were certain he could? If he were certain she felt the same way? If he knew that they will still be together once the sun rises the next day?   
He cares so much, and he can’t bear the thought of taking advantage of her.   
  
Because it’s impossible for him to tell if Jester is just like this naturally or if she’s doing this intentionally to show she’s interested.   
  
Better to pretend he doesn’t see what she’s doing, better to play stupid than to make a move and scare her. Better Jester feel rejected than do anything to hurt her, intentionally or not.   
Unless she states something out loud, tells him she’s interested, Fjord will pretend he doesn’t care for her more than as a friend.   
Because it’s better to have Jester think he doesn’t like her romantically, as she can and will get over that, than to misread the situation by making a move and force himself on her.   
  
Jester means _too damned much_ to him, and he would _die_ rather than hurt her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live just outside Oslo, and I've lived here since 2001, and yet I had NEVER been to the Botanical Gardens in Oslo until a week ago. And then I ended up using inspiration from it for this chapter which made me struggle a lot less with it that I would have otherwise


	13. Concerns Parting

_ Rakshasa’s Respite. Midnight. Alone. _   
  
_ Run _ .  _ You must run _ . The words ring through her mind over and over again. Fjord. Fjord is in danger. She just knows it. Jester doesn’t know  _ how _ she knows, but the voice telling her to run is not her own.   
  
_ Faster. Run faster _ .    
  
Jester skids around a corner, barely catching herself before she falls.  _ So close. Almost there _ . _ Hurry. Hurry _ . _ Before it’s too late _ . Before Fjord is lost to her forever.   
Her bare feet hit the cobbled streets harder and faster, adrenaline surging through her, keeping her up and running. She can visualise her target, just a few more blocks.  _ Almost there _ .   
  
She runs around the next corner and there…   
  
\---   
  
The steam fills the small chamber as Jester sinks into the tub.   
  
The warmth of the water seeps through her, relaxes her muscles. She only now realises how sore her muscles are, from walking and riding in a cart, as well as sleeping in a bedroll. Jester knows now she’s been spoilt her entire life, knows that most people never even sees a bed as soft and large as the one that is hers back in the tower.   
  
She missed it for the first few nights.   
  
But then she quickly grew to learn she much prefers the company and the freedom her new life entails; she’ll much rather spend her days sleeping on a thin bedroll in a covered wagon with the company of her friends and the closeness of Fjord, than alone in her bed atop the tower with none but Nott for company.   
  
Jester loves Nott dearly, but being around others, making more friends means she could never go back to her old life.   
  
She’s entirely naked in the tub, because she reasons that she is when bathing back in the tower (not  _ home _ ;  _ the tower _ ), and when washing up in creeks or the odd inn on their way here, the others from the circus have stripped down. And Molly walks around naked  _ a lot _ , so being naked alone here with Fjord shouldn’t be a problem, right?   
  
But when he walks in and she sneaks a good look…   
  
Maybe this was a bad idea after all, because looking at him makes her body react to his presence in a way she really did not expect.  _ Act like everything’s normal _ , she tells herself.   
Luckily Fjord helps in that regard, unknowingly, by acting adorably flustered.    
  
So she does her best to reassure him that there’s nothing to worry about, that she doesn’t care that they’re both naked. Together. Alone in a room.   
  
Jester stretches, and the way her muscles feel so much more relaxed already makes her let out a sound that probably wasn’t a good idea, probably. Not if she judges Fjord’s reaction to it correctly.    
She doesn’t know if Fjord reacts to the sound or to  _ her _ , and if she’s to be honest with herself, she is worried about the answer.    
  
“You ever been to a bathhouse before Fjord?” she asks him to distract them both before things get awkward.   
“Nah. Couldn’t really afford it growin’ up, and it didn’t make sense what with workin’ down at the docks ‘n all. Why spend money goin’ to a fancy place like this only to smell the same way the next mornin’.”   
  
She smiles at him.   
  
“To new experiences then? Together?”   
“To new experiences,” Fjord repeats, mimicking raising a glass.    
  
For a while they sit together, eyes closed, breathing in the steam and letting the water work wonders on their muscles.    
  
“You gettin’ hungry yet?” Fjord asks her when the water’s cold enough that it warrants leaving.   
“Sure Fjord! Should we go eat more pastries?”   
  
Fjord laughs as he gets out after her.   
  
“I was thinkin’ more about a lil’ place I know over by The Sapphire Sea. Well, it’s a pond, really, but it was named that after the Queen’s lost daughter, as they say her skin is the colour of sapphire. Made sense since the Queen’s known as the Ruby, I guess.”   
  
Jester doesn’t know why, but the mention of the word  _ sapphire _ combined with  _ ruby _ makes her skin tingle with something.   
  
It reminds her of the feeling she had when she first looked at the horn ornaments, and while it’s not uncomfortable, it makes her feel a bit, well, uneasy for the lack of a better description. It messes with her mind enough that Fjord  _ almost _ walks into her, barely stopping himself with a hand placed on her shoulder.    
  
“You okay Jes?”   
“Huh? Oh yeah, I just got a bit dizzy cause I think I stood up too quickly. I think you were right about getting food.”   
“If you say so.”   
  
They get dressed quietly, toweling off with warm, soft towels and putting on freshly laundered clothes.   
  
“Lead the way,” Jester tells him once they step outside in the afternoon sun.   
“You sayin’ we’re gonna walk and not run for once?” Fjord asks, laughter in his voice, and Jester sticks her tongue out at him. “Here, just in case.”   
Fjord holds his arm out towards her, and she grasps it with both her hands.   
  
Together they walk through the streets, watching the sun climb lower on the horizon, until they pass through the East Gate into the large park surrounding the pond.   
  
Jester sees a small dock on one side, and next to it sits a couple small buildings. As they approach, Jester sees one is for boat rentals, while the other seems to sell packs of food for people to enjoy on the various benches. There’s quite a few people around, and some have even brought along blankets to sit on, as children and dogs run around.   
  
Fjord leads her to the building with the food.   
  
“Welcome to The Pixie’s Picnics, what can I get you?”   
“Hi, we’ll have the one with some of everythin’, please.”   
“It’ll be ready in a few minutes, so if you’ll just pay up front and then we’ll let you know once it’s finished.”   
“Sure thing. How…”   
“That’ll be two gold if you’re wanting drinks with that,” the woman says before Fjord can finish his question.   
  
She would sound rude if she didn’t look frazzled from the apparent evening rush that comes with a warmer than usual afternoon for this time of year, so Jester holds her tongue.   
  
Fjord pays for the food and drinks, then they settle down with their backs against a nearby tree, watching the other people who are resting after a long day of work. These people are from all walks of life; Jester sees farmers and fishermen, monks and merchants, families and couples, people that are richer than some, but not so much so that they’re not willing to sit on the ground to share a meal they eat with their hands.   
  
They get their pack a few minutes later, as promised, and Fjord tells her to just wait under the tree for him to fetch it.   
  
He returns with a basket filled to the brim with fruits and vegetables, meats and cheeses and breads, even some pastries that makes Jester’s mouth water and she barely restrains herself from reaching out for those.   
There is water and juice in there, and Jester is quick to take a bottle of what turns out to orange juice, because she likes the colour of it.   
  
“This was a really good idea Fjord,” she tells him as she stuffs her mouth with a slice of bread with cheese on it, swallowing it down with some juice. “Imagine if we could eat like this all the time when on the road! Wouldn’t that be the best?”   
“Not that I don’t agree with you Jes, but I find that some things becomes less special if you can have it all the time. I think this is better simply because it’s a rare treat - like with the bear claws - rather than something we eat every day.”   
  
She nods, understanding the meaning of his words.   
  
“But that only goes for things like food and a good bed right?” she asks, thinking back to her previous musings in the bathhouse. “When it comes to people it’s different.”   
“You’re absolutely right Jes. Though... I’ve learned some people work better together in short periods of time, cause they’re either too much the same, or too different to be together for more than maybe a handful of days. More ‘an that, and they risk falling out.”   
  
Jester wants to ask if he thinks  _ they’re _ like that, if he thinks he can only handle being with her for a few short days at a time, but the prospect is too terrifying, as so many of her thoughts have been this day.   
  
“It’s probably better than no friends at all though…” She doesn’t mean to say it out loud, but she does.   
“Jes?”   
“Yes Fjord?”   
“Thank you, for bein’ my friend, and for insistin’ we get to know the circus.”   
“You’re very welcome Fjord!”   
  
He knows her so well already.   
  
“So I was thinkin’,” Fjord says once they’ve finished eating, “that we could take a boat out on the lake. You haven’t been on the water before right? And I know that the sea can be scary, ‘specially the first few times, so I figured maybe you’d wanna start small?”   
“Sure! That sounds very fun!”   
  
They deliver the basket back to the Pixie’s Picnik, then walk over to the boat rental.   
  
Fjord does the talking while Jester selects the boat, because “It’s my first time out on the water Fjord, so I wanna choose which one!”   
He doesn’t oppose her, and she picks one with flowers painted on the sides, fading from the water and sunlight but bright nonetheless.   
  
“Here, I can do that!” Jester says as one of the workers is about to pull the boat into the water.   
  
She takes the rope from their hands, hands it over to Fjord to hold and then she pushes the boat into the pond as he holds onto the rope to make sure the boat won’t be out of their reach.    
Once it’s fully in, Jester gets in, aided by Fjord, who then joins her. Once seated, they’re handed to oars, which are kept separately to discourage people from trying to steal the boats for a free ride in the middle of the night.   
  
“Okay, so how do you do this?” Jester asks once the oars are in her hands.   
“Want me to row?” Fjord asks instead of answering, but Jester’s not having it.   
“I am stronger than you and so it actually makes sense that I row the boat, actually. Now you just tell me how it’s done, okay?”   
  
The person from the boat rental just shakes their head at them as they walk back.   
  
Jester pays them no mind, because she is here to have a good time with her friend Fjord and to learn something new as she does, and so she doesn't care that they find this strange. She sees that in every other boat, the men are the ones rowing, while the women all just sit there - some with parasols shading them from the sun.    
  
Sure, she could probably let Fjord row, probably, but it’s much more fun to do things her own way instead of copying everyone else.   
  
“You don’t mind, do you Fjord? I mean, cause everyone else does it the opposite of us and I don’t want you to feel like people are staring at us because of it and judging us. I don’t mind, but if you do…?”   
“Nah, I don’t mind Jes. Let them stare if they want to; we can’t stop ‘em anyway. ‘sides, you’re right, you are stronger than me, and you’re learnin’ somethin’ new right now. Might make a fine sailor one day yourself.”   
“Are you saying I could become a seaman?”   
  
Fjord sputters at that.   
  
“I think it’s better if you say sailor, not seaman, cuz you make it sound like somethin’ else when you say it like that.”   
“Like what?”   
“Your accent. Makes it sound like…”   
“Oooooh!” Jester feels her eyes widen and she grins. “Okay, I will be careful around other okay? But I will not stop saying it around you because it’s so funny watching you get all flustered and all.”   
  
Just saying it makes Fjord blush again, and Jester grins at him, an even bigger one than her last.   
  
She rows until they’re in the middle of the lake. They’re pretty much alone this far out, as the others seem to prefer to stay closer to the shore.    
But Jester feels safe here with Fjord, isn’t worry about drowing even though she can’t swim, because she knows Fjord will save her if anything happens out here.   
  
The sun is setting, painting the sky orange and red and pink and purple.   
  
It reflects onto the still water, bathing the area in an ethereal glow as they sit there in silence, taking in the sounds of laughter from the other people around, distant though they are, and the sounds of birds singing their last before darkness falls.   
As they sit there, Jester can see people leaving,moving to return home before it gets too dark, and as the moon and the first stars appear in the sky, the hoots of owls fill the air, a sharp contrast to the screams of the gulls that fill the daylight hours.   
  
She draws Fjord as they sit there.   
  
Draws him backed by golden light; then by a dark sky filled with stars, the moon a halo behind his head.    
Jester draws the constellations she thinks of when she sees him and the stars he’s told her about that are the most important ones for sailors.   
The low light means nothing to her, because Fjord sits right there, close enough that she can only reach out her hand to touch him.   
It would be so very easy to finally take that last step.   
  
And as she draws him surrounded by constellations made up of creatures of the seas, it’s as if her world is illuminated, as she realises how much she loves him.   
  
\---   
  
There’s Fjord, on the ground, falchion just out of his reach. And above him stands Father.    
For a moment Jester swears she sees inverted paws instead of hands and black stripes across his face, but then she blinks and it’s gone.   
  
“Father!” Jester is furious and terrified and it coats her voice.   
“Jester, my dearest daughter, I was so worried about you,” Father says, arms outstretched towards her.   
“Step away from my friend!”   
“This man? Dear, he was trying to attack me. I just defended myself.”   
“You’re lying. Fjord would never do that!”   
  
Father just looks at her.   
  
“How can you be so sure? You have known him for what? A few days?” He glares down at Fjord who is still awake but unable to move. “After he somehow found our home by accident and took you away from me?”   
“Fjord helped me! I asked him to bring me here and he did!”   
“And you think he wants nothing out of this?”    
  
Jester shakes her head.    
  
“Fjord is kind and helpful and handsome and hardworking. He takes care of me!”   
“For how long, hmmm? Do you think this will go on forever? What about after today, when your deal is done? You say he promised only to bring you here.”   
  
She takes a mental step back, and almost a physical one as well.    
  
“He’s not like that. I know him. I lo…” She can’t finish the sentence, she  _ can’t _ , not when she’s about to lose it all.   
“You love him? My jewel, you can’t love  _ this _ ! This whole romance, you have invented it, and it proves you’re too naïve to be away from home.” Father looks at her, eyes sweeping up and down her form, clad in the flowery dress from the circus, hair mussed with stray flowers wilting in it. “Have you looked at yourself? Do you think he is impressed? Come now, Jester, why would he like you? You have no experience, don’t know how this world works. You don’t belong out here.”   
  
Jester shakes her head, trying to not listen to Father, but…   
  
“I only want to protect you, jewel. What will you do when he tires of you? When he leaves you alone somewhere because you can’t keep up? Or when he takes advantage of you? The tower is the only safe place for someone like you. I do not say this to be cruel.”   
  
She looks at Fjord, helpless on the ground.   
  
“Father, I…”    
“Jewel, do not make me hurt him more than I have. You know I despise fighting, but if that is what it takes to keep you safe…”   
“No! Don’t hurt him!” Heart heart is beating too hard and fast in her chest. “I’ll… If you promise to leave him alone, I’ll go with you.”   
“That is all I want, my jewel. Now come, let us go home.”   
  
Jester takes one last look at Fjord.   
  
“Can I say goodbye?”   
“Make it quick.”   
  
She bends down, taking Nott out of the pocket of her skirt, giving her a kiss on the top of her head.   
  
“Keep him safe for me. I will be okay, okay?” Jester smiles sadly at Nott, her first friend. “I’m going to miss you very much, but Fjord needs you more than I do. You’re very small but I trust you more than anyone and I need you to let the others know for me.”   
  
Jester turns to Fjord, whose eyes are still open, and he is looking at her, even though the rest of his body can’t move.   
  
“Thank you for everything Fjord. I am going to miss you, I already miss you a lot, but I will never forget you. I hope you find a place to call home one day. Tell Molly and Caleb, Yasha and Beau that I will miss them and that I am sorry I couldn’t say goodbye, but that it was time I went back home.”   
  
She gets up from the ground, barely holding back her tears.   
  
“Goodbye Fjord.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm leaving for Crete on Saturday morning, and I'll be gone a week, but I will TRY to finish the last chapter so I can post it while I'm gone, so y'all won't have to wait an additional week, but I can't really promise anything


	14. Wherein We Recieve Closeure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some things WILL make more sense if you've read the third chapter of Touch first!

The note lead to a trap.   
  
Fjord knew this would happen, but had not been prepared for who he would meet.  _ What _ he would meet.    
Jester’s father is not human, even though he appears to be, and Fjord had not been prepared for it. Upon arriving at the small square where the  _ Rakshasa’s Respite _ lies, he had expected to meet a rich man, angry for having his so-called daughter stolen away but who would stand back and not fight Fjord himself. Who would make someone fight for him.   
  
What he had found instead…   
  
As he lies on the ground, listening to Jester walk away with the man she thinks is her father, anger and fear surges through him, but he is helpless to do anything. He can feel Nott burrowing underneath him to hide, so the creature masked as a man won’t see her.   
  
If he could speak, he would tell Nott to go with Jester, to leave him behind, but he can’t.   
  
Nott squeaks several times against him once they no longer hear any footsteps before she emerges again. She sounds distressed, and for once Fjord feels like he understands her. He tries to make his lips move, but it seems the spell will hold him for a while longer.   
  
Then he starts to sneeze as he suddenly hears hooves approach.   
  
Fjord can’t move his head to look, but there is that horse again, the one that keeps appearing, and it seems it will save his life once again.    
It nudges Fjord with its head, nostrils flaring, warm breath that smells of grass wafting over his face.   
  
Nott squeaks at it, and when it lowers its head towards her, she scampers up until she settles on its head.   
  
More squeaks from Nott and the horse runs off at full speed. Fjord can’t help but watch as they leave and hope they’re going to get help. He sends out a prayer to The Traveler for Jester’s sake, asking him to keep her safe.    
_ She matters, so much more than anyone else. Do what I couldn’t, and keep her safe, please. _   
  
He closes his eyes as his lids are the only part he is able to move, and waits.   
  
\---   
  
Fjord wakes up, bolting upright, falchion in his hand.   
  
He looks around, expecting this to be just another bad dream, expecting to find that Jester is beside him and not traveling away from him.   
But she’s not.   
  
Instead, he is surrounded by a small group of people.   
  
Caleb sits with a book in his lap, Molly’s head on his shoulder. The tiefling is sleeping, and Caleb’s muttering arcane words and moving his hands around. It seems that the wizard’s noticed him but that the spell he’s casting is more important at the time.   
Seeing it’s safe, Fjord sends his weapon away again.   
  
Fjord sneezes, and it causes Beau and Yasha to enter the tent, making the space even more cramped.    
  
They look worried, worn out. Molly looks relaxed in his sleep, and while Caleb seems worried, there is also a smile on his face as he works the spell, and as Fjord watches, tendrils move through the air, out of the tent.    
The glow can be seen through the cloth, and Fjord sees the shape of a horse shrink and change until…   
  
A cat rushes into the tent.   
  
Only the sleeping form of Molly keeps Caleb from throwing himself forward, but seconds later the cat is in his arms, purring and hooking its claws into Caleb’s worn coat, clinging to the man for dear life.   
  
“Frumpkin!  _ Ich habe dich vermisst _ ! _ Es tut mir so leid, mein Freund _ .” His happiness means Caleb’s speaking nothing but Zemnian, and while Fjord doesn’t understand the words, he understands the meaning of them.    
  
Caleb is crying openly, and Fjord is truly happy for the man.   
  
But his allergies are getting the better of him especially in this cramped space and so he exits the tent. The air is better outside, but he still doesn't feel like he can breathe properly, because while  _ he _ might be safe right now,  _ Jester isn’t _ .   
  
“Where did the cat come from?” he hears Molly ask, voice sleepy.    
“Mollymauk, it is Frumpkin. The spell worked!” Caleb laughs as he says it, laugh through the happy tears. “It is all because of you  _ meine Geliebte _ .”   
  
“Caleb?” a small, high pitched voice comes from the outside of the tent, next to Fjord and he turns at the sound to find…    
  
His falchion is back in his hand, held out towards the goblin who sits on the ground. It (she?) looks up at him, legs tucked against their chest, completely naked and unarmed.    
Fjord glares at her, but before he can do anything, the flaps of the tent parts, and Caleb, Frumpkin in his arms, emerges awkwardly, Molly at his heels.   
  
“Nott?” Caleb asks, voice breaking at her name and... THAT is Nott?! What the? “Is that you? Is that really you?”   
“Caleb?” Nott repeats. “ _ Caleb _ !”   
  
The goblin throws herself at him and Caleb sinks to the ground, accepting the naked creature into his embrace as Frumpkin crawls up onto this shoulders, acting much like a scarf.   
  
“ _ Bei den Göttern! _ Nott, _ mein liebster Freund _ !” Zemnian words again, as the two hold each other while the other stare at them, wondering what had just happened. “I am sorry, I am so sorry. The spell, I had forgotten all about you! ”   
“It’s okay Caleb,” Nott tells him, tears making her voice sound strange. “I didn’t remember you either. But I was with Jester, and Jester needed me. She’s been alone for so long Caleb, and she needed a friend.”   
  
Then Nott looks to Fjord.   
  
“Jester!” she exclaims. “We have to save her!”   
“What do you mean, ‘save her’?” Beau asks.   
“Her dad. He came here to get her back. Sent me a note to meet him in town, alone. I didn’t tell Jes, but she found out and when she got there he’d cast a spell on me and there was nothin’ I could do. She said she’d go back to the tower if he left me alone, and I wanted…” Fjord pauses, trying to remember to breathe, “I wanted to tell her to run, to get away from him but I could only watch and listen.”   
  
He looks to Nott.   
  
“You saved me.”   
“Oh… Yeah, I guess I did huh?”   
“Thank you Nott, for listenin’ to her, but we have to go, we have to leave now!” Fjord looks at the sky, brightening more and more from the rising sun. “They left hours ago. Midnight. Got a head start. We can’t let him get away.”   
“But he is her dad, is he not?” Yasha asks, voice as calm as ever.   
“No, he ain’t. He ain’t even human!”   
  
They all look at him, questions burning in their eyes.   
  
“I saw him.” He squares his shoulder, stands up straighter and looks at all of his friends. “He’s a rakshasa.”   
  
\---   
  
It’s all a blur after that. They all grab their gear, find some clothes for Nott and ready horses for travel. Fjord oversees it all as Molly talks to Gustav, Yasha and Beau gathers food and supplies.    
To travel lightly is the most important thing, but they’ll also need enough food and water.   
  
Fjord doesn’t want to push the horses too much, but Yasha says they know people along the way, in the towns they perform in who should be willing to trade horses with them.   
  
They leave as soon as they’re able to, riding until the horses needs to rest. None of them feel like eating, but they force down some pieces of bread and drink some water, careful to not drink too much as they’re not certain of where the next clean source of water is to be found.   
Then they ride again until nightfall, where they don’t bother to light a fire, instead leaving two people on guard and three sleeping huddled up together at any given time.   
  
Once the sun’s first rays are visible, they set off again, until they reach the first town with a decent number of horses.   
  
Beau and Yasha oversees the trade, while the rest of them refill their waterskins.    
Then they move on again, and each day is like the last, as they get closer and closer to their goal.   
Fjord doesn’t know how long it’s been since Jester and the monster returned to the tower, because he finds it very likely that the rakshasa knows magical means of transportation, and so they could have been back by the following morning.   
  
Whereas Fjord and the others spends day catching up.   
  
_ Keep her safe from him. Don’t let it be too late. Please, Traveler, please. Protect your worshipper, protect your friend. _ _  
_   
It’s a mantra Fjord keeps repeating again and again, fearful that the Traveler won’t hear him or not care, but he keeps on thinking it, says it aloud at times too in the hopes it will help.    
But then he remembers Jester’s backpack, left behind in camp when she ran to rescue him. and the next time they make camp for the night, Fjord spends his watch writing small notes, longer messages and draws - oh so crudely compared to Jester - to communicate with the Traveler, just like Jester.   
  
He hopes it will help, hopes the notes will one day be read by Jester herself.   
  
Trying to find out how long it will take them to reach the tower is difficult, as they not only travel at a very different pace but also don’t stop on the outskirts of towns to perform for a night.    
But each hour is torture and Fjord finds his sleep lacking, getting more and more restless the longer they travel.   
  
On the fifth day when they camp for the night, he knows they’re close.   
  
They make an early camp in the clearing where they had first met, mere hours away from Jester. Fjord wants to keep moving, but knows the horses needs rest, as well as the rest of them. Fighting a rakshasa is difficult enough as is, but fighting one when exhausted is a death sentence.    
  
Sleep is worse that night, because Fjord is caught in nightmare after nightmare, unable to wake up.   
  
When he does at last, it’s to the worried faces of his friends surrounding him. Sunrise is hours away, but they’re all awake and dressed, and they even have a small fire going, boiling some water for a healing tea made with herbs that they had purchased in the last town they passed through.   
  
“You have been screaming in your sleep for the last hour or so,” Caleb says, holding a steaming mug of the brew out to him. “Beauregard tried to wake you, but…”   
  
As Caleb trails off, Fjord can see the blooming bruise on Beau’s face and knows she’ll have a black eye in a matter of hours. Thankfully she doesn’t look bothered by it, and he gets the feeling that she harbors no ill will towards him. ‘Sides, he hadn’t done it on purpose.   
  
“You okay?” he asks Beau as he takes the cup from Caleb, and she nods. “Good. Still wish I hadn’t done it, but the nightmares…”   
“Yeah, we heard you screaming out for her,” Nott peeps up from where she stands on one side of Caleb, pressed up against his side.   
“We’ll help her, don’t worry. That thing, whatever it was you called it, it doesn’t know what’s coming for it,” Molly adds from Caleb’s other side, and Fjord sees his tail tucked around Caleb’s waist in a protective and comforting manner.   
  
As the others talk around him, sharing ideas on how to proceed, Fjord drinks his warm brew, but the warmth that fills him has nothing to do with the temperature and everything to do with his friends.   
  
\---   
  
  
Once they have a plan, they pack up and lets Fjord, Nott and Frumpkin lead them towards the hidden entrance.   
  
“I’ll check for traps,” Nott says as they reach the trap door. “Fucker might have placed traps, just in case. I’m sure there’s at least one other way leading out of here, but he knows we know of this one.”   
“Good thinkin’ Nott.”   
“Yeah, thanks Nott,” Beau says.   
  
The goblin nods at them, then goes to work checking the door for traps.   
  
Once she’s certain there aren’t any, she opens it and leaps down before anyone gets the chance to react, and it’s a good thing because a second later three arrows shoots out of the hole, narrowly missing the rest of them   
  
“Ooops, sorry! That one’s on me! It’s been years, you know, since I’ve done this.”   
“Well, I do hope you pick up on your skills again soon  _ mein lieber Freund _ , because I think this was only the first of several.”   
“Yes, okay.” She nods to herself, determined.  “I’ll scout ahead, so you wait here. Caleb, do you have a piece of wire?”   
“I do,  _ ja _ . Here you go.”    
  
Caleb hands her a small length of copper wire and then Nott moves down the dark tunnel.   
  
She’s barely taken a few steps before Caleb enters the opening after her, casting globules of dancing lights to follow her to make it easier.    
It’s a good thing too, as she spots the next trap and disarms it with ease.   
  
They still stay back at the entrance; Beau and Yasha up top keeping watch, and Fjord, Molly and Caleb inside.   
  
“So what happened?” Fjord asks, looking at Frumpkin who is wound around Caleb’s neck like a scarf. His nose is clogged and he regrets going down this soon. Magical cat or not, Frumpkin sets of his allergies.   
“I woke up one day and they were gone. I could only remember Frumpkin, but even that took a while, and I suspect it is because he his my familiar. But Nott… I did not remember her. Even when you and Jester appeared with her, I had no memory of her, but the name made me feel… sad. I felt loss but did not understand why.” Caleb pauses, scratching Frumpkin. “Then Mollymauk took me to a bookstore in Port Damali and I found the book I was looking for. You saw the result yesterday,  _ ja _ ? But I did not know it would also affect Nott.”   
  
There’s some commotion ahead, and then the sound of Nott’s voice echoing back.   
  
“I’m okay! I almost wasn’t but it’s taken care of!” Caleb sighs next to him.   
“You’re used to this?” Fjord asks him.   
“ _ Ja _ , I am. She is not always good a this, and sometimes it is more luck than skill but she has gotten better with practice.”   
“Only, it’s been year since she’s done it.” Fjord adds, matter of factly.   
  
Caleb nods, and there’s a small shout of victory up ahead.   
  
Then Nott comes rushing back. “Hey Beau! Do you have any ball bearings I can use? Some of these traps are a bit finicky and I think I can take care of them by shoving something into the holes.”   
“Lots of things can be solved by doing that,” Molly says, winking at Caleb as he does, and it makes both the wizard and Fjord blush.   
“Fuck you Molly!”   
“Rather you didn’t Beau!”   
  
Nott rolls her eyes at them.   
  
“Beua?”   
“Yeah, yeah. Here ya go. Don’t spend it all in one place okay?” Beau says and tosses her small bag down to Nott.   
“Thank you!”   
  
Then she rushes off again, and they’re left to wait as she works on disabling some traps that apparently are holes in the walls or floors.   
  
Some loud curses later, Caleb sends a message down to her.   
  
“Nott, remember that you can use mage hand. Do not put yourself into more danger than you have to.” Fjord hears Caleb’s end of the spell, but not the reply.   
“She still alive down there?” He asks.   
“ _ Ja _ . For some reason she does not always remember the few spells she can, and I suspect there are some things she no longer recalls how to do, and so I think it best to remind her. Although,” Caleb laughs a bit at this point, “she has always been good at forgetting to use mage hand.”   
  
Fjord finds Caleb has a nice laugh.   
  
He’s been so focused on other things that he hasn’t realised just how rarely Caleb laughs until now, and this is a true laugh, not a scoff or something that indicates he is nervous.   
But most of all, Fjord notices the effect it has on Molly, how it makes the lavender tiefling smile and look at Caleb warmly.   
  
“Nott says it is clear,” Caleb says a few minutes later.   
  
They all make their way carefully down the tunnel, looking at the signs of traps that have been disarmed or set off, and a scattering of ball bearings on the floor and stuck into small holes in the walls.    
  
Nott waits for them a the end, and Fjord activates the mechanism that opens the wall.   
  
Stepping into the office it looks very much the same as when Fjord passed through the day he met Jester, but he knows it doesn’t mean anything, and asks Nott to check the door for traps.   
Caleb meanwhile checks out the numerous bookcases and Fjord sees him pocket several scrolls and put some tomes aside for later perusal.    
  
“All clear,” Nott says and together they creep through the door.   
  
It’s thankfully still dark outside as they spread out and move through the tall grass of the meadow.    
Fjord hears them murmur about the place, how beautiful and well hidden it is, and wonder how Jester’s managed to stay sane all these years.   
Nott doesn’t comment, familiar with this place as she is, but it’s still her first time seeing it in a different perspective, as she’s back to her normal, larger form.   
  
They don’t speak, but Fjord points towards the hidden door and Nott leads them there as he stays in front of it, not trying to hide.   
  
“Jes! Could you please let down your hair?” Fjord shouts towards the large window at the top of the tower.   
  
As he does, his friends sneaks towards the shutter at the bottom of the tower.    
The plan is for them to go up the staircase while he keeps the rakshasa distracted. Far as they know, the creature only knows about Fjord, not the rest of them, and so they should be able to pull it off.   
  
He holds his breath while waiting, hoping with all his might that Jester’s still safe, that the man who claims to be her father won’t have caused her any harm.   
  
Then, at last, the hair is thrown over the side and he grabs on for dear life as he’s hoisted up.    
Once at the top, he is grabbed and dragged into the main room. Fjord lands on his back, looking up into the face of the rakshasa, who looks human again.   
  
A sound from a dark corner of the room grabs his attention, and he turns his head to look.   
  
What he sees is Jester, shackled and gagged, straining against her bonds. Her hair looks dull, dirty and he fears she’s been tied up like this ever since her return.   
She shakes her head when he opens his mouth to speak, and so he closes it again for a moment, but then turns back to the rakshasa.   
  
“Let her go,” he says, anger in his voice, but the creature laughs at him.   
“Why would I do that, pray tell? Why should I let you have my jewel? I went through so much trouble to get her in the first place! That bitch, the Ruby, she deserved it all, deserved having it all taken away. Then the horn ornament from the castle - which you almost ruined for me by the way, thank you for that. I almost had you, you know, that day when those two  _ halflings _ ,” he spits the word out like it leaves a foul taste in his mouth, “messed up, and I should have ended them then and there.”   
  
A foot presses down harder on his chest, causing Fjord to cough.   
  
“But I let them live, because I knew I might still need them, useless as they are. And I did, because they somehow managed to find you, and then delivered my note. So it all worked out in the end, see? I knew I should have killed you there, but at least this way no one will ever find you. And no one will learn my secret.”   
  
The trapdoor slams open and his friends pour into the room.   
  
“How kind of you to have brought your friends along. Now I won’t have to bother dealing with them later on.”   
“Oh that’s right. You won’t have to, cause we’re gonna kill you first,” Beau spits.   
“I admire your courage, I really do, but you see, my kind isn’t that easy to…”   
  
The rest of the words die before he can utter them, as a bolt slams into his chest.   
  
It’s followed by a blast of fire from Caleb, before Yasha and Beau step up to engage him. Molly sweeps in and helps Fjord stand up as Nott moves over to Jester to attempt to unlock her shackles.   
  
“Be careful!” Jester shouts as soon as the gag leaves her mouth.    
  
She then lets out a sound of horror and distress and betrayal as the creature she thought was human, the one she thought was her father, turns into his true form.   
It’s that of a humanoid, but the head is that of a tiger, as are the inverted paws.    
  
Fjord imagines he can taste the magic in the air as the rakshasa prepares to cast a spell.   
  
He sees it flicker and wizz past Yasha’s head, as the woman ducks out of the way and swings her sword at him.   
Caleb moves up the stairs to Jester’s room to gain distance and to get a better look at what is now essentially a battlefield.   
The rakshasa then turns towards Fjord, claws digging deep into this chest and the pain causes him to fall to his knees and his vision goes black for a moment.   
  
Jester screams out in rage and fear, and ss soon as her hands are free, she summons her lollipop.   
  
She aims it at him, but misses as he ducks out of the way of Beau’s blow with her staff, and in her fury she screams and tries again, and this time it glances off of him and hits Fjord so hard he passes out.   
  
\---   
  
“Fjord! Fjord, can you hear me?! Please be alive,  _ please please please _ !”    
  
He groans as he opens his eyes, blinking into the light of the morning sun. Above him is Jester, hair wild and tangled, tears in her eyes, but she looks fine apart from that. He sees no scratches or bruises or any drops of blood.   
  
Fjord closes his eyes in relief, tears welling in his eyes as well because he has spent days being terrified, and to now see her safe and hole in front of him…   
  
“Don’t die Fjord, please don’t die!”   
“‘m not planning to,” he mumbles. “light’s too bright ‘s all.”   
“Okay, I can fix that!”   
  
A few moments pass, and then Fjord notices the light dims until the worst of the sun is blocked out. He opens his eyes again.   
  
“Jes! Your hair!”   
“Oh yes, I cut it, do you like it?”   
“What do you mean you cut it?”   
“That.. thing did something that tied his lifeforce to my hair or something? I don’t know, I didn’t pay attention to him really cause I was so mad that he was chaining me up as I said it cause it was just after we got back here and he’d used magic to make us get here faster, but I didn’t know then that he wasn’t human and also he lied about it changing to black when cut and…”   
“Jes, stop talking please.”   
  
She tilts her head to the side and looks at him.   
  
Fjord knows what he wants to say, what he wants to do, but…   
  
“The others, are they okay?”   
“Oh yes. They’re upstairs in my room, resting in my bed because it’s big enough for all of them.”   
“Good. I’m glad.”   
  
He’s so tired now. It would be so easy to just close his eyes and drift away.   
  
“Fjord?”   
“Yeah Jes?”   
“Thank you for saving me.”   
“I wouldn't have been able to if you hadn’t saved me first.”   
“No I mean…” she sound different now, serious, “I mean when you first found me. I don’t know how much longer I could have…”   
  
Fjord reaches his hand out and cups her cheek, looking into her eyes for permission before leaning in to finally,  _ finally _ kiss her.   
  
Jesters lips are soft despite the chapped skin. She tastes of cinnamon and candy, smells like the sea and lavender perfume.    
It’s better than Fjord could ever have imagined; gentle and clumsy and awkward and wonderful and chaste, all at the same time.   
  
“I love your hair,” he says as they part, one hand cradling the back of her head, newly shorn tresses between his fingers. “It’s even bluer now.”   
“I know! I didn’t know it could do that!”   
  
They smile at one another; gentle smiles full of love and relief.   
  
“Jes. Molly and I, we think that…”   
“That I’m the lost princess? Yes, he told me. So did Fath.. that  _ thing _ . Well, not straight out, but you heard him right? Saying that my...” she takes a deep breath, as if steadying herself, ”that my  _ mother _ deserved him kidnapping me.”    
  
His hand tightens at the back of her head and he draws her in for another kiss.   
  
“So. What will you do now?”   
“I don’t know. I wanna leave this place, go with you. All of you, really but…” she kisses him again. “Mostly I wanna go with you.”   
“I would love that Jes. But I think you should go see your mom. I’ve heard stories about her grief at your disappearance. I never knew my parents, and I know that your mom’s gonna love you. Even if you’re not gonna stay, you should at least go see her, let her know you’re alive.”   
  
Jester nods.   
  
“Will you go with me Fjord?”   
“I’ll go everywhere with you Jester Lavorre.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW! I can't believe I'm actually done with this????  
> It's been a fun ride, and an experience in writing new characters (Fjord took FOREVER to feel like I had the slightest grasp on writing him). I wish I could have gotten to write Nott more but this is how it had to be.
> 
> There will be an epilogue at some point, as well as come BeauYasha bonus chapters, just like with Widoleaf in Touch.
> 
> I'm was going to post this next week seeing as I already updated once this week, but whoops! It just wanted out! So much so that I wrote this in two days while also being away for six hours yesterday and spending hours making my deodecahedron today...
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading, giving kudos, leaving comments and subscribing. It's kept me writing this, even when I felt like I struggled with getting their characterisation right.
> 
> I hope you've all enjoyed reading is as much as I've enjoyed writing it!

**Author's Note:**

> As always, come find me on twitter as MidnightMinx90, and on tumblr as GrayGlacianQueen and QueenofGlaciaWrites
> 
> I also have a ko-fi in case anyone can and would like to support me. You can find me there as QueenofGlacia
> 
> \-----
> 
> THERE IS NOW A COMPANION PIECE TO THIS in case anyone is interested in additional Widomauk/Widoleaf/whichever shipname you prefer. It's called Touch, and contains bonus Molly/Caleb scenes from this fic


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